At The Forsyth Institute, we understand the value of healthy communities. In fact, we were founded on the principle that all children should have good oral health care – regardless of their ability to pay.
Our service in the field produces a lot more than just pretty smiles. Together with our pioneering research, our community work has led to scientific breakthroughs and contributes to our overarching mission of advancing human health around the world.
Our current community initiatives include:
This innovative program brings oral health education, dental exams, cleanings, and preventive care directly to children in need, right in their elementary schools. ForsythKids is the catalyst of all our work at the Institute.
On the invitation of Kuwait's government, we implemented a preventative dental care program for its children. Our school-based clinics – now the primary source of oral health care for young Kuwaitis – serve more than 250,000 kids every year, and our presence there has sparked a better awareness of oral health across the country.
Mary Tavares, DMD, MPH, and her team focus on the public health aspects of dentistry. Dr. Tavares is currently working on programs to integrate health and wellness with dental care for children. She is in the second year of a feasibility study to create and test a Healthy Weight Intervention for children in the dental clinic setting. This program is successfully improving targeted diet and activity behaviors that place children at risk for obesity. The goal of the Healthy Weight Intervention program is to promote awareness of healthy weight, and behaviors that foster it, to children participating at clinics in Maine and Massachusetts.
Through our DSM-Forsyth Center for Evidence-Based Dentistry, we are providing technical assistance and training to the chief dental officers of several Latin American countries. We communicate our prevention and education initiatives in the region through a family of publications in Spanish, English, and Portuguese.
This initiative exposes students in the Boston Public Schools to the world of scientific research. To encourage interest among high school students from populations traditionally underrepresented in the sciences, this program offers promising young people the opportunity to work in Forsyth laboratories, mentored by world-renowned scientists engaged in cutting-edge research. More >