ECTC Dental Clinic taking patients

The local community college once again is offering low-cost dental services to area residents.

The Dental Clinic at Elizabethtown Community and Technical College is accepting patients. Patients can receive preventive services at a low cost while giving students in the dental hygiene program hands-on training.

The clinic, which is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday and Wednesday and runs through the end of the school year, can provide patients with cleanings, X-rays, fluoride, sealants and exams by a dentist. Adults can receive these services for $45, while ECTC students and faculty, seniors and children ages 12 and younger can be seen for $35.

Those interested in the services can contact the clinic and set up an appointment for a screening, where their medical and dental history will be recorded and X-rays will be taken, said Lois Cousins, site coordinator for the dental hygiene program. This determines how many appointments will be necessary and the needed length of treatment.

Patients are referred elsewhere, such as the University of Louisville dental clinic or local dentists, if they need more extensive procedures like a filling or a tooth pulled.

Cousins said appointments typically last longer than those at a dentist’s office, so they’re ideal for patients who have financial constraints but have extra time available.

The clinic has been at the college since about 2000, Cousins said. The clinic typically serves about 200 or more patients through a school year.

Unlike other allied health programs, the clinic allows for the students to do most of their time working with patients on campus, Cousins said.

“We’re right here, in-house,” she said.

The clinic provides a place for people to receive dental services who might not be able to afford them elsewhere or travel to another clinic, she said.

“We fill that little niche in our service area,” she said.

To set up an appointment, call (270) 706-8568.

Kelly Cantrall can be reached at (270) 505-1747 or kcantrall@thenewsenterprise.com.