Success Story

Fundacion Simsa

Healthy Little Mouths

Bogota, Columbia — The Ciudad Bolivar neighborhood of Bogotá is normally not a place where an outsider, especially one who works for the Policía Nacional de Colombia (National Police of Colombia), would want to be at night. But Dr. Lida Alarcón did not mind keeping her mobile dental clinic open until dusk recently.

Outside was a long line of children who needed dental attention. Among them were 25 children shepherded by a woman whose husband was killed in the violence that is so common in the city’s poor neighborhoods. When she first visited in May 2007, dragging her six children, she was very skeptical that the dental care offered by Dr. Alarcón was good or truly free. With her children’s dental problems now treated, she has become one of the clinic’s most passionate advocates.

“It’s really working,” Dr. Alarcón said of her program, Boquitas Sanas (Healthy Little Mouths). “Their initial attitude was that if the service was free, then the quality must be no good.”

A family with money to see a private dentist would have to pay $40 per visit per child, plus another $50 for follow-up treatment. Although the government has a comprehensive public health program, it does not cover oral health. “They will pay if you have heart or lung problems, but you have to pay if you have a toothache,” Dr. Alarcón said.

The almost complete lack of access to dental care among the country’s poor motivated Dr. Alarcón to start Fundación Simsa in 2004. Its aim is to reduce dental problems among poor children and improve their oral health. The foundation, named after her two boys, Simon and Santiago, fulfills Dr. Alarcón’s dream of offering free dental care to children whose families cannot otherwise afford it.

Boquitas Sanas operates in some of the poorest and most violent neighborhoods in Bogotá. With support from The Global Fund for Children, it holds mobile clinics every three or four weeks on weekends, depending on arrangements made by its church partners. The churches give the clinics legitimacy in the neighborhoods and get the word out about their services.

When the children arrive at the clinic, Dr. Alarcón’s husband, Francisco, records their basic information, putting them at ease by interspersing serious questions with silly ones. (“Married or single?” he asks one five-year-old.) A cartoon video called Mr. Molars usually plays in the background, helping the children to relax while at the same time educating them on dental care and hygiene.

Dr. Alarcón and up to three other dentists examine the children in the portable dental chairs that they bring along. If the children have no problems, they are given a quick fluoride treatment, a new toothbrush, and encouragement to keep up the good work. Those who have problems stay for treatment.

Usually, more children come after they see their friends walking home with their free toothbrushes. By the time dusk comes, as many as 160 children will have been treated by Boquitas Sanas.

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