Appalachian Rural Dental Education Partnership Program (ARDEP)

Purpose, Description & Rationale The proposal continues implementation of a rural dental education partnership to address oral health needs and partnership network development for the Appalachian region of Kentucky. Morehead State University and the University of Kentucky are currently completing the second year of implementation of the Appalachian Rural Dental Education Partnership (ARDEP). The long-range goals of ARDEP are: 1. To increase opportunities for Kentuckians from the Appalachian counties to pursue dental education and practice as a career choice. 2. To improve the numbers and distribution of dentists practicing in Kentucky’s Appalachian counties. 3. To improve oral health literacy and demand for care. 4. To develop financially sound oral health models to benefit the economic base of and societal improvements in Appalachia. As part of a prior ARC planning grant, a Comprehensive Oral Health Needs Assessment recommended a major oral health initiative to develop regional partnerships and coordinated care networks (public health, safety net organizations, regional medical centers, regional universities and practitioner networks). Morehead State University and the University of Kentucky formed the ARDEP partnership to help address these goals by development of an innovative university dental pipeline model and partnership network across the ARC region.