Local Elderly to Receive Dental Care, 16 New Assisted-Living Units

Thanks to a vote by the board of the Peninsula Health Care District (PHCD), local senior citizens will soon receive dental health services and new assisted-living care units.

PHCD, which is based in Burlingame and serves the communities of Burlingame, Hillsborough, San Mateo, Millbrae, San Bruno and Foster City, voted at its board meeting on April 26 to support two initiatives that will provide the services and facilities to the "frail elderly and underserved" within its service area.

The Board approved a $125,000 grant to Apple Tree Dental to develop a detailed business plan for a new dental care program and clinic to address the dental health needs of frail seniors, special needs adults and low-income residents within the PHCD's service areas. 

The board also voted to support Lesley Senior Communities’ application to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for federal funding for affordable assisted-living units in San Mateo. The Board approved $2 million in District support for the affordable units, contingent upon successful completion of the HUD funding proposal.

“The Board is well aware of the health needs of its aging population,” said Dan Ullyot, chair of the PHCD Board.  “The frail elderly in particular need health care support as well as a community-based means for keeping them safe and comfortable in a home-like environment.  In recognition of these needs, the Board is investing in programs to bring more accessible dental care and more affordable assisted living to its elderly residents."

The PHCD Strategic Plan identifies dental health as one of the most important unmet needs among older adults, with San Mateo County having one of the most rapidly aging populations in the United States.  Apple Tree, a successful and experienced provider of dental care, has been working with the District on a needs assessment. 

Dr. Michael Helgeson, CEO of Apple Tree Dental and a national leader in dental health programs for the underserved, presented the findings of the Eldercare Dental Needs Assessment.  

The report concluded that this community could support a sustainable dental care program that would include an outpatient clinic with geriatric and special care dentistry expertise, an on-site dental care delivery operations center, several mobile dental delivery systems, and an on-site dental lab to meet growing geriatric and special care dentistry needs.  

The newly-approved $125,000 community health investment will fund a comprehensive business plan to detail the care model, facilities, and staff necessary to achieve those goals, including possible development of an on-site dental clinic on District land. 

Sarah Lambert, executive director of Lesley Senior Communities, explained Lesley’s plans for converting 20 existing senior apartments in San Mateo into 16 affordable assisted-living units, based on a similarly successful program at Lesley Terrace, currently the only affordable assisted-living facility in San Mateo County. 

“We are eager to use the Lesley Terrace model to create an additional 16 units of affordable assisted living,” she said, which will “provide residents with meals, medication management,  assistance with bathing, dressing and laundry, and other services.”     

For more information, visit www.peninsulahealthcaredistrict.org.

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