DentistLink Connects Patients to Oral Health Care

Finding a provider and getting to appointments. These are some of the biggest hurdles to access dental care, even if you have insurance.

DentistLink is working to clear these hurdles. A program of Arcora Foundation, it connects people to dental providers for oral health services. DentistLink helps everyone, whether you have insurance — including Apple Health — or not. It also can provide referrals for transportation and resources so people can make it to their dental appointments.

“If you’re not sure how to get to the dentist, or if you’re not sure how to get childcare when you go to the dentist — that’s what we do,” says Svea Stromme, DentistLink’s senior program manager.

It works like this: search for a dentist near you on the website, DentistLink.org, or call or text the DentistLink team at 844-888-5465. They will help you find a dentist in your area.

Cherice Fischer, a referral specialist for DentistLink, often takes calls from people looking for a dentist. She helps them find a provider and arranges appointments.  

“Oral health is directly related to overall health,” Fischer says. “Connecting parents with the vital services that are available in the community is a building block for their family and their children.”

As a partner of Smile Spokane, DentistLink served more than 2,500 people in Spokane County in 2021. If those numbers increase in the coming years, it will represent a major stride toward making dental care more accessible and equitable.

In addition to focusing on increased oral health care access for Medicaid-insured adults for Smile Spokane’s Access strategy, DentistLink works with a number of partners on Smile Spokane’s other strategies as well. Through the Care Coordination Strategy, DentistLink partners with Aging and Long-Term Care of Eastern Washington and Spokane Regional Health District to connect people with diabetes, older adults, and pregnant patients to oral health providers. Through the Care Linkages Strategy, DentistLink partners with Frontier Behavioral Health to connect individuals living with mental illness to oral health care. In partnership with the Sealants Strategy, DentistLink helps families find dental homes for their kids.

DentistLink is for everyone. It focuses on equitable access to oral health care services to people in Spokane — and across the state — especially populations that are under-resourced and underserved.

“If the system in which we’re operating isn’t working for everyone, what can we do to change that?” Stromme asks. “How can we make sure all of our neighbors have equitable access to care to get the resources they need and deserve?”