The Maine Dental Connection mobilizes and connects the state’s existing network of oral health care providers to increase access for Maine people by bringing care into community settings where people already spend their days. This program expands the vision of a dental home beyond a brick-and-mortar office, embracing community-based, patient-centered care to build dental homes as ongoing, trusting relationships between a dental care team and the patient and their family.

The Maine Dental Connection initiative is an evolution of the virtual dental home (VDH) model founded by Dr. Paul Glassman and first implemented in California in 2010. VDH is an oral health care delivery system in which preventive care and early intervention are delivered by a dental hygiene team in a community setting. In this model, records are then shared asynchronously through secure technology with a dentist for a comprehensive exam and treatment plan, including any in-office restorative care found to be necessary. This model, when fully implemented, can keep 80% of pediatric patients healthy in the community without having to visit the dentist office.