A Heart for Service, a Dream for Smiles
Rochester native, Ella Pattinson, 20, has been volunteering for The Salvation Army Good Samaritan Dental Clinic since the beginning of the summer. About to enter her third year of college at UW Madison with a double major in Biology and Global Health, Ella has known since her senior year of high school that her goal was to become a dentist.
“It’s always been the goal,” said Ella, “ I had a lot of wonderful experiences at the dentist’s office growing up. I love that dentists get to provide direct patient care, and having played in team sports all my life, I love that dental offices have a team culture where everything is all about the patient.”
Ella was first exposed to dentistry when an opportunity to shadow a dentist at Family Dentist Tree, a Rochester office from which dentists have come to volunteer at the Good Samaritan Dental Clinic for over 20 years. “Dr. Bell was actually the first one to encourage me to volunteer for the Good Sam, and Dr. Cooper is actually coming to volunteer right after we finish this interview.” Dr. Peters, Dr. Reis, and Dr. Bisbey (retired) from Family Dentist Tree have also been generous supporters and volunteers of the dental clinic.
“When I shadowed, I realized I really enjoyed it,” said Ella, “I enjoyed talking to people, building relationships with patients. As an only child, connecting with other people is something that’s always been very important to me, and I love that that’s such a key part of dentistry.”
Ella had been volunteering on The Salvation Army campus long before her interest in the dental clinic took root. As a part of the John Marshall Key Club, she had volunteered to distribute bags of food to community members in need after school every Spring, and recounts the experience as being a real constant in her high school life.
But her first two summers home from college were too filled with multiple jobs to allow Ella time for volunteering. It’s only this summer, with her time spend studying for the DAT (Dental Admission Test), that Ella has had the opportunity to volunteer at the Good Sam. “This has been such an opportunity for me to learn from dental professionals across the community,” said Ella, “Everyone has their own style, their own process, but everyone is so willing to teach. I’ve gained so many mentors this summer.”
The Good Samaritan Dental Clinic has a long history of writing letters of recommendation for student volunteers as they apply to dental school. Two local dentists, Dr. Vander Broek and Dr. Beatty, actually volunteered as students, went off to dental school, and then came back to volunteer again as dentists after earning their licenses.
For Ella, who will be applying for dental schools across the Midwest next Spring, she says her experience at the dental clinic this summer has been very meaningful. “Being here has taught me that, no matter where you are in your career, there’s always good you can do.”
“This clinic is so unique,” Ella continued, “We’re so lucky to have a clinic like this in our community, when clinics like this don’t really exist anywhere else in the State, and so many people don’t know this clinic is even here. The more people know about this clinic, the more people we can help here.”
When asked what she would say to professionals in the dental community, Ella shared, “there’s so much need. This clinic doesn’t just serve Rochester; there are patients who drive over 30 minutes to get here, and the wait list to be seen is so long.
“This clinic is really putting people out of pain [providing tooth extractions]. It’s providing that direct patient care, and on top of helping so many people, this is different from a traditional clinic. There are so many skills you learn from volunteering here, things you learn from other professionals. And we have food every clinic!”
Ella also shared the need for volunteers from outside the dental community. “This clinic provides a valuable experience for any pre-professional interested in healthcare. You can learn everything here, and anyone can help. I would advise people to just show up, because I did, and as a result, I learned.
“This place has helped me to feel really connected to my community, connected to providers, and patients in the area. It’s a place where people can feel rooted in their community.”
Our entire team of staff and volunteers wish Ella the best of luck as she heads into her Junior year next week, and we wish to extend our sincerest thanks to the many people who give of their time to make the Good Samaritan Dental Clinic accessible for patients in need.
To learn more about The Salvation Army Good Samaritan Dental Clinic, please visit rochestersa.org.