Ethos Financial has partnered with the Hunt School of Dental Medicine at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso to establish a dental operatory suite that will give students the opportunity to learn proper techniques, treatments and sensitivities for the oral health care of special needs patients.
Ethos Financial, an El Paso-based financial planning firm, has gifted $25,000 to equip the suite, which will be named for the company. The gift will also support student scholarships, specialized equipment and patient care.
“Every individual deserves access to quality care,” said Inaam H. Ziyadeh, president of Ethos Financial. “I believe the most vulnerable in our community are often the most overlooked, and when I learned of the opportunity to help facilitate a place for care, I jumped. It’s so important to help improve critical resources for those who otherwise struggle to access the services that the new clinic will provide.”
This will be only one of two special needs suites in the region, both located at the Texas Tech Dental Oral Health Clinic thanks to the generosity of private donations.
According to the American Dental Association, patients with special needs are those who due to physical, medical, developmental or cognitive conditions require special consideration when receiving dental treatment.
This can include people with autism, Alzheimer’s disease, down syndrome, spinal cord injuries and countless other conditions or injuries that can make standard dental procedure more difficult.
“Caring for a patient with special needs takes compassion and understanding,” said Richard Black, D.D.S., M.S., dean of the Hunt School of Dental Medicine. “This gift is a constant reminder that our business community believes in our mission to grow our own, the next generation of dentists who have a strong commitment and appreciation for our culturally diverse region and the unique needs of patients they serve.”
The clinic, scheduled to open summer 2021, will give Hunt School of Dental Medicine students real-world experience under the close supervision of faculty, while providing a much-needed service for the community. The clinic’s mission is to improve the accessibility of oral health care in the community and will offer reduced-cost dental care to the public.
“El Paso is a city that has many underserved areas,” Ziyadeh said. “I believe that the new dental school will give care for our entire region regardless of a patient’s financial means or special needs. TTUHSC El Paso has already provided our community with so many wonderful health care professionals, from the medical school to the nursing school. The addition of the dental school only shows that there’s so much more growth to come. The opportunities it will bring to our community are endless.”
When complete, the 38,000-square-foot clinic will be equipped with 130 treatment chairs and is expected to be the top dental-care destination, not only for the public, but for faculty, staff, students and their families.
