The two-day annual Iowa Mission of Mercy free dental clinic will get underway in eastern Iowa Friday. Iowa Dental Foundation Executive Director Laurie Traetow says the offer all sorts of dental services from cleanings up to some partial dentures during the clinic in Waterloo.
“I-MOM is just a very welcoming environment, so if a patient hasn’t been to a dentist for a long time there is no judgment,” she says. Traetow says they try to make it as easy as possible for people. “We even offer free childcare for patients who are being seen in the clinic. We also have a pediatric area of the clinic,” Traetow says, “so if patients have children who would need to be seen we would certainly work them into the clinic and then ensure they’re in a safe place in the childcare area as well.”
The services are all on a first-come, first-served basis, and they usually have people lined up when the doors open at 6 a.m. “We’d love to see as many patients there as possible and help as many people as we can. More information can be found on our website which is IowaMOM.org, Iowamom.org,” Traetow says. She says they don’t necessarily have a closing time, and will treat as many patients as they can in the two days.
This is the third time for the event in Waterloo, including the first one back in 2008.