St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic staff stand
ready to start a new day of patient care.

The St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic (formerly Madre Angela Dental Clinic) is a collaborative program sponsored by Columbia St. Mary's (CSM) to provide dental care to people in poverty without access to care. The Clinic functions as the only provider of urgent dental care in Milwaukee for people without insurance except for the BadgerCare Core Plan. The Clinic also provides restorative care, dental appliances, dental hygiene services and a comprehensive school-based oral health program.

The St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic receives support from many organizations. A key collaborator is the Greater Milwaukee Dental Association which works to recruit volunteers to provide service to clients and assists in identifying funding opportunities. Support is also received through students of dental hygiene and dental assistant training programs. Local and national foundations have provided support as well. Ongoing funding from the United Way of Greater Milwaukee is focused on restorative dental care for people with low incomes. Corporate support from Delta Dental is critical to the clinic’s ability to provide urgent care treatment.

The Clinic provided 11,072 dental encounters in 2007. A third of the care provided was urgent care for people who walked into the clinic on referral from emergency departments, shelters, treatment centers and community programs. More than 100 dentures were also provided to people for whom oral functioning was extremely impaired or for whom employment options would be greatly improved by a better appearance. School-based oral health was given to 2,565 children. In 2007, the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic became the largest provider of School-based oral health in Wisconsin. Click here for more details to the oral health program. Overall, the value of dental services provided was more than $1.2 million in 2007.

Financial support is received through State of Wisconsin Oral Health Access funds, United Way of Greater Milwaukee, the Mission and Ministry Fund of the Daughters of Charity, BadgerCare Plus, Health Care for the Homeless, many local foundations and Columbia St. Mary's Foundation, which coordinates grant requests and individual donations for the clinic.

Marco’s Smile

Marco is a tall, shy 12-year-old special needs student at a River West neighborhood school in the Milwaukee Public School System. When Smart Smiles, Columbia St. Mary’s School-based Oral Health Program, came to Marco’s school in January, his parents signed him up to participate. Marco does not have a regular dentist and his family is without dental insurance.

Because of his cautious nature and fear of strangers it took some gentle convincing, but finally Marco decided the Smart Smiles dentist could look at his teeth for an oral screening exam. Several days later, he allowed a Smart Smiles hygienist to clean his teeth and apply fluoride. Marco also had a tooth brushing lesson from a dental assistant with the help of “Sunny” the Smart Smiles teaching puppet. The entire Smart Smiles team was pleased and proud to have given Marco those important oral health services in a comfortable environment for him—his own school.

But the story doesn’t end there. A month after Smart Smiles treated Marco at his school, a partnership between Milwaukee Public Schools and Columbia St Mary’s was established to provide dental treatment beyond what Smart Smiles could provide for uninsured children who attended Milwaukee Public Schools. A dentist is now available on Fridays at the The St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic to examine and treat children served by Smart Smiles who need additional dental care and have no insurance.

Like the 60% of children Smart Smiles treats, Marco had untreated dental caries (cavities). His father made an appointment and brought Marco to the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic on the first Friday in April. The staff at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic made Marco feel welcome and gave him lots of extra attention. The dentist did a thorough examination, including X-rays, and then proceeded to complete the needed care that same day. Marco left the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic with a new filling and a healthy smile. Marco also made some new friends he can count on for dental care next year when Smart Smiles returns to his school.

Patient Nancy Bissett, featured with Dental Assistant Ana Liz Paniagua,
proudly displays her new smile at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic . Bissett is grateful to the staff at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
Dental Clinic and the United Way of Greater Milwaukee for
supporting restorative dental care for people
in financial difficulty.

"I have nothing but praise for the staff at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic. They completely reconstructed my mouth, from top to bottom. The quality of their work was better than it would have been if I had paid a fortune for it.”

Those are the words of Nancy Bissett, a middle aged woman who lives in Cudahy. Bissett had fallen, a “freak accident” as she calls it because when she fell, she broke her cheek bones, the orbit of her eye and all of her front teeth.

Unemployed and job-seeking at the time, she had no money to pay for the dentistry she needed. Seeing her reflection in the mirror, she reasoned, “Who would hire me?" She fell into depression.

“Ordinarily, I’m an outgoing person,” said Bissett, “but I was traumatized. I was so ashamed that I always covered my mouth with my hand when I talked, and I regressed so much that I hated to go out, even to the grocery store.”

Then Bissett, who had moved to Cudahy from Des Moines, Iowa, remembered the upcoming family reunion. Her family would see her disfigurement. She was devastated—until she learned about the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic and United Way of Greater Milwaukee’s support for restorative care for people in financial difficulty.

Bissett’s care at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic was extensive. It spanned more than a year, with appointments occurring at least once, often twice, a week. “The staff was so understanding, so supportive,” she recalls. “They would always build me up for the next step by saying things like ‘You’re doing great, Nancy.’ ‘You’re half way through, Nancy….’” The staff was “respectful,” “gentle” and “thoughtful,” and “someone even got me some Vaseline^TM because “my lips would get extremely dry during long procedures.”

Today, with 12 new teeth, a reconstructed jawbone and “more other kinds of dental work than you can imagine,” Bissett smiles readily. “I have a beautiful smile,” she boasts, “and I smile a lot. I have a job, too. Actually, I have an interview scheduled for an even better job. I’m grateful to the staff at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic. They’ll always be in my heart.”

Then almost as a P.S., she adds, “I know this all seems unbelievable, but I want you to know it’s true. My maiden name is Lincoln. I’m a seventh cousin to Abe. It’s in our family to be honest.”

“By the way, I’m really looking forward to that family reunion.”

The St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic
1730 S. 13th St.
Milwaukee, WI 53204

Elizabeth Nelson, Clinic Manager
T: (414) 383-3220
F: (414) 383-3363

Clinic Hours
Monday through Friday
8:00 am to 4:00 pm

Urgent Care Registration
People in need of urgent care must register at the clinic at 7:30 am. At that time, a drawing is held to determine treatment times for urgent care during that day. Part of the registration process will include providing proof of income within 150% of the Federal Poverty Level and residency in the following zip codes: 532XX, 53110, 53129, 53130, 53132, 53154, and 53172.

Restorative care for routine cleanings and fillings is limited. Seton Dental Clinic maintains a waiting list based on available financial sponsorships. Interested people should call the clinic to inquire about the restorative care waiting list. Patients with insurance coverage are not eligible for restorative care.

Referrals
The St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic provides urgent care to people without insurance and incomes within 150% of the Federal Poverty Level during walk-in times. People are cared for through a triage system with swelling and bleeding situations given priority. Routine dental fillings and cleanings are served through a waiting list coordinated by the clinic receptionist. Proof of income and residency in the following zip code areas: 532XX, 53110, 53129, 53130, 53132, 53154, and 53172 is required for services at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Dental Clinic.