Dental Outreach of Collier, Inc. (DOC)

In 2010, Dental Outreach of Collier, Inc. (DOC) was formed with the help of our founding Board of Directors:

 

1.  Dr. David O’Sullivan (Board President)

2.  Dr. Leo Cullinan (Board Vice President)

3.  Dr. Steve Evans (Board Member)

4.  Dr. Larry Leventhal (Board Member)

5.  Dr. Jay Crandall (Board Member)

6.  Mr. Jim Bell (Board Member)

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The mission of Dental Outreach of Collier, Inc. (DOC) is to provide comprehensive dental care for the underserved of Southwest Florida while educating future Dental Health-care Providers and the Community we serve.  From the very beginning we have operated under the one imperative; to establish excellence in our program, procedures, policies, and environment.

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One of our major objectives is to establish a firm foundation of trust and communication between Dental Health Professionals, patients, students and the institutions of Dental Outreach of Collier, Inc. (DOC) and the Lorenzo Walker Institute of Technology (LWIT).  The program was created to ensure the most positive patient experience, enriching educational environment for the Lorenzo Walker Institute of Technology (LWIT) Dental Assistant Students, and efficient treatment delivery for our Volunteer Providers.  The patients we treated were residents of St. Matthew’s House.

 

Over the course of 10 years, we worked diligently in several different locations and partnered with Dental Health Services of Collier County to provide critical dental services to the underserved of Collier County.  Behind the scenes we raised money for supplies, to pay dental assistants, and purchase much-needed equipment to support our non-profit operations.

 

While this program touched the lives of hundreds of patients, we found it impossible to maintain and closed our operations after the 2018 recession.

 

Florida Mission of Mercy (FLAMOM)
 

During the period of time when Dental Outreach of Collier, Inc. (DOC) was successfully treating the underserved patients in Collier County.  Dr. Cullinan rose through the ranks of the West Coast District Dental Association (WCDDA), a component organization of the Florida Dental Association and the American Dental Association.  In 2012, Dr. Cullinan served as President of the WCDDA and started taking his concept of Professional Volunteer Service to his colleagues in visits to the 11 affiliate organizations within the WCDDA from Collier County to Pasco County, north of Tampa.

 

In 2013, Dr. Cullinan joined the Board of the Florida Dental Association Foundation where he helped create Florida’s first Mission of Mercy (MOM) program called Florida Mission of Mercy (FLAMOM).

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Florida Mission of Mercy (FLA-MOM) is a large-scale, two-day, professional dental clinic that provides care to any patient at no cost to them, with the goal of serving the underserved and uninsured in Florida — those who would otherwise go without care.

 

In 2014, under the careful guidance and dedication of Dr. Cullinan and his co-chair, Dr. Nolan Allen, the FDA Foundation’s first FLAMOM event was held on the Tampa Fairgrounds.

 

In just under one year, a huge team was developed to take the concept of “Service to Others” to an unimaginable level.  Over the course of 3 days, 800 Dentists, Dental Specialists, Registered Dental Hygienists and Dental Assistants and over 1100 non-professional volunteers treated over 2000 patients with a value of dental services exceeding $1 million.

 

Dr. Cullinan and Dr. Allen went on to serve as the State-wide FLAMOM Co-Chairs till 2019 bringing FLAMOM events to Jacksonville, Pensacola, Orlando, and Ft. Myers.  Since then, successful events have been held in Jacksonville again and Tallahassee.

 

For more information about the FLAMOM Program and History:

https://www.floridadental.org/foundation/programs/mission-of-mercy

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View the video of the 2014 Florida Mission of Mercy hosted in Tampa, FL: https://vimeo.com/97427648#

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Check out this FLAMOM Impact: Eight Years of Changing Lives infographic.

 

 

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Click the PDF icon to download the Volunteering/Service to Others Infographic.