Help A Child Smile
Oral cancer is among the most common cancers in the world
Dental disease is the most common chronic disease of childhood
Help us tackle these problems
Help a Child Smile is a student-led movement working to raise early awareness about pediatric dental disease and oral cancer.
We seek to bridge the gap in oral healthcare inequalities for underserved communities and provide access to care.
Our mission is to reduce suffering and save lives through education and advocacy for oral health.
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Pediatric dental disease is the most chronic childhood illness in the world, affecting 1 in 5 children. Access to care is limited. making it the most prevalent unmet healthcare need. In the U.S, 17 million children go without treatment every year, and world-wide, oral disease affects half the world's population. It has a significant impact on communities due to pain, impaired function, and reduced quality of life.
Oral cancer ranks among the leading cancers of the world. Worldwide, over 530,000 new cases are detected annually. It kills one person per hour per day and its incidence is increasing due to lack of awareness of risk factors and diagnosis late in development.
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The high incidence of oral disease and mortality of oral cancer are largely preventable through regular screening and early detection. Early awareness and treatment prevents future problems and saves lives.
This is the heart of the HCS mission!
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Our Three Pillars
Oral Health Education
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EDUCATION
We raise awareness about pediatric dental disease and the importance of early diagnosis and preventive care through health seminars in elementary schools and early learning centers. In developing countries which have very high oral cancer rates, we raise awareness about high-risk factors such as alcoholism, and betel nut and tobacco chewing. We emphasize the importance of early detection to save lives and connect people to dentists and the Oral Cancer Foundation for free screenings.
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Free Hygiene Supplies
PREVENTION
Low-income and underserved communities often lack the basic hygiene supplies to prevent dental disease and they have limited access to dental care. Through fundraising, partnering with dental supply companies, and creating a distribution network, we deliver free dental hygiene kits to rural and underserved areas, group homes for children, and the slum districts in Delhi. Our goal is to bring down rates of dental disease in marginalized communities by providing free hygiene supplies to aid prevention.
Affordable Health Care
TREATMENT
One third of Americans struggle to access basic dental care and there is a severe shortage of providers for Medicaid patients. Low-income families and underserved areas have 5 times higher oral disease rates because they lack access to routine dental care and oral cancer screenings. We connect patients to affordable and accessible oral healthcare through a network of mobile buses, charitable clinics, Medicaid offices, and government hospitals that provide free dental treatment.
Our Events
Over 150,000 supplies collected and 40,000 oral cancer awareness brochures distributed
Over 17,000 children provided dental hygiene kits and oral health education booklets
A network of offices and volunteers providing free dental care with over 10,000 volunteer hours donated
