Santa Fe Group

In 2002 the predecessor organization to the Dental Trade Alliance and the Santa Fe Group, a nonprofit public health advocacy organization, launched the Oral Care Access Scholars program that focused on increasing dental care access. The DTA provided funding and strategic direction, while the Santa Fe Group provided conceptual guidance and overall project management. A competitive "call for proposals" was published to seek small-scale, but creative projects that would strike out in new directions to achieve broad, strategic improvements in oral health care and dental productivity. This program supported ten research and service-oriented projects, dealing with such issues as dental office productivity, acceptance of new technologies, and culturally sensitive public education regarding oral care.

Soon after the Dental Trade Alliance was formed by the unification of the American Dental Trade Association and the Dental Manufacturers of America, the DTA Foundation was created to build upon these programs and seek new and innovative initiatives pursuant to the expansion of oral care access. The Santa Fe Group continues to work with the DTAF to select the four grants awarded each year.

National Foundation for Dentistry for the Handicapped

The Dental Trade Alliance Foundation has a long-standing relationship with the National Foundation for Dentistry for the Handicapped (NFDH). Since 1991 the DTAF has partnered with the NFDH and their Donated Dental Services program through DentaCheques, an industry driven coupon book for dental offices. DentaCheques has provided the NFDH with $3.3 million in net income, which has funded over $110 million in dental care to thousands of disabled, elderly and medically compromised individuals. Improvements made by the DTAF DentaCheques Committee for the 2008/2009 coupon book helped to triple revenues to over $1,500,000. This will enable more than $22,000,000 in care to be delivered.

Industry Partnerships

American Dental Association

The DTAF is proud to sponsor the annual ADA Give Kids a Smile Promising Practices Symposium. Beginning in 2007, all three of the annual symposia have provided a great forum to bring dental program directors and coordinators together to compare notes and identify promising practices to help their programs thrive. The 2009 gathering was all about finding dental homes for thousands of underserved children so they receive ongoing rather than episodic care, a truly worthwhile goal. We are pleased that this effort plays a small part in the success of the Give Kids a Smile program each year.

American Association of Public Health Dentistry

A three year grant from the DTAF has underwritten the efforts of the AAPHD to recognize dental school students for exceptional service through public health dental efforts/programs. Each year AAPHD sends a request to every Dental School Dean and Dental Hygiene Program Director asking them to select the one student who has best demonstrated these qualities. Each student is awarded a one year membership in the AAPHD and a one year subscription to the Journal of Public Health Dentistry. Additionally, each student is presented an award certificate during their graduation ceremony.

American Dental Hygienists Association

A three year grant from the DTAF helped fund the ADHA Feasibility Study on expanding the capacity of the Registered Dental Hygienist as a means of expanding access to oral care. The grant also helped fund the ADHA Master File project. As part of the ADHA’s Research Resources Center (RRC), the Division of Research collects and analyzes data and other information on a wide range of dental hygiene-related issues commonly known as the Master File. Master File information is disseminated by ADHA to the dental hygiene and oral health professions and the public.

American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry

A three year grant from the DTAF helped fund an AAPD initiative called Dental Home by Age 1. The initiative is focused on a well established model used in medicine. The goal is to establish a primary care dental office of record for all children by their first birthday. The concept of the Dental Home reflects the AAPD's clinical guidelines and best principles for the proper delivery of oral health care to all children, with a concentration on infant/age one patients. The Dental Home enhances the dental professional’s ability to assist children and their parents in the quest for optimum oral health care, beginning with the age one dental visit for successful preventive care and treatment as part of an overall oral health care foundation.