Optometrist Rhonda Hutton said many practices offer few frame choices for children who are on Medicaid, and her new business, Adventure Dental & Vision, offers three large walls of frames in all colors and styles. (Chris Neal / The Capital-Journal)
While Medicaid covers eye doctor visits and dental care for children, plenty of health care providers don’t accept state or federally funded insurance. This can make it difficult for low-income parents who want to schedule checkups and procedures for their kids; they don’t know which clinics are available. However, the process of finding a dentist or an eye doctor in Topeka just got a little easier — Adventure Dental &Vision opened its doors Oct. 3, and parents are welcome to pay with Medicaid.
According to Kim Ducharme, a vision training specialist at Adventure’s headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo., the company, which specializes in providing care to underserved children, will offer dental services in Topeka within the next few months. Eye care is already available.
Ducharme said 80 to 90 percent of Adventure’s patients are on state health care plans, but the clinic won’t turn anyone away for having a different type of insurance (or none at all): “Although we will see any patient, if they have insurance or if they don’t have insurance, our main goal is to make sure that the kids get the health care that they need. Our providers and our team absolutely has to be passionate about kids and health care.”
Rhonda Hutton has been an optometrist for almost 20 years, and she provides eye care at Adventure Dental &Vision in Topeka. She said the company’s high-quality care (which she witnessed at one of its Wichita clinics) inspired her to take the job: “To me, when you’ve been doing something for a while, it’s kind of hard to find something that makes you want to get up in the morning and go to work. I’ve got that back now. I’m really excited to be here.”
According to Hutton, Adventure offers a wider range of approved frames than parents will find at other vision providers (which increases the chance that children will wear the glasses they need). When children walk into Adventure, they will see large pictures of wizards, dragons and other creatures on the walls — an atmosphere designed to make them feel more comfortable. Hutton said some of her patients haven’t had many encounters with doctors, and it’s her job to make the experience less intimidating.
Hutton said comprehensive vision exams are essential for children. While vision screenings, which children often receive at school or during routine checkups with family doctors) can identify certain problems, they’re liable to miss others. The American Optometric Association has called this “a major concern about vision screening programs.” State health insurance plans cover comprehensive vision exams, so parents should take advantage of this at clinics like Adventure. Doing so can pre-empt serious problems later in life.
Parents are responsible for doing research on any clinic they choose, and Topekans now have one more promising option to consider.
Members of The Capital-Journal’s editorial advisory board are Zach Ahrens, Matt Johnson, Ray Beers Jr., Laura Burton, Garry Cushinberry, Mike Hall, Jessica Hosman, Jessica Lucas, Vern McFalls, Veronica Padilla and John Stauffer.
Source: cjonline.com
