On World AIDS Day, New Study Finds 1 out of 20 Dentists in Los Angeles Will Not Treat HIV-Positive Patients

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) November 30, 2011

A new study released today by the Williams Institute found that five percent of dental offices in Los Angeles County have a blanket policy of refusing dental services to People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA).

The study also found that an additional 5% of dental providers would treat PLWHA differently than other patients in ways that could potentially violate anti-discrimination laws. Examples of such different treatment include only providing the most basic of services to PLWHA, such as a cleaning, or only treating them on certain days of the week or in an isolated room.

?Thirty years into the epidemic, HIV-positive patients continue to face discrimination when accessing dental care,? says study co-author Brad Sears, Roberta A. Conroy Scholar of Law and Executive Director of the Williams Institute. ?While it is definitely encouraging that 90% of dentists in Los Angeles County do treat HIV-positive patients, it is likely that the rate of discrimination is higher in other parts of the country.?

The study used trained ?testers,? researchers who called dental offices posing as potential new HIV-positive patients, to measure the level of HIV-discrimination. In total, 612 dental offices in Los Angeles County were contacted in 2007 and 2008. Calls to the offices were made in English and Spanish, and by callers who said they had private dental insurance as well as Denti-Cal, a dental benefit tied to California?s Medicaid program (that was largely de-funded in 2009).

The study also found that the rate of dentists having unlawful blanket policies of refusing service to PLWHA is lower than that of other health care providers that have been previously studied. Similar studies of health care providers in Los Angeles County conducted by Sears between 2003 and 2006 found that 55% of obstetricians, 46% of skilled nursing facilities, and 25% of plastic surgeons had such policies.

?The study suggests that consistent legal enforcement and education efforts, both during dental school and afterwards, have had a positive effect on dentists, and have thus created expanded access to care for PLWHA,? says Sears.

The most common reasons that the dentists gave for refusing to accept HIV-positive patient were that the dental office was not equipped to treat HIV-positive patients and that extra infection control precautions would be required.

?Dentists can treat HIV-positive patients safely and effectively,? says study co-author Fariba S. Younai, Professor of Clinical Sciences & Vice Chair, Division of Oral Biology and Medicine, UCLA School of Dentistry. ?The same standard infection control precautions should be used with all patients and every patient should be treated as if they had a blood borne disease. Thus, every dental office should be equipped to treat HIV-positive patients.?

Despite the overall lower rate of discrimination, the study found that levels of discrimination were twice as high for PLWHA who had Denti-Cal as opposed to private dental insurance. In addition, dentists who were older and who did not go to dental school in the United States were more likely to provide a discriminatory response.

Rates of discrimination were also higher in areas of Los Angeles County with higher rates of HIV-infection, and with more low-income people, people of color and women among the infected. Specifically, rates of discrimination were significantly higher in the San Gabriel Valley and South Public Health Service Planning Areas (SPAs), as compared to other parts of Los Angeles County.

?The findings indicate that training and education efforts over the past 20 years have had a positive effect. Many of the dental clinics tested responded with affirmations such as, ?Of course we would accept you -we do not discriminate here.? However, the data also suggest the need for more targeted education efforts to ensure equal access to dental services for all PLWHA,? says study co-author Tom Donohoe, Associate Professor of Family Medicine at UCLA?s David Geffen School of Medicine and Director, UCLA/Pacific AIDS Education and Training Center.

About the Williams Institute

The Williams Institute advances sexual orientation law and public policy through rigorous, independent research and scholarship, and disseminates it to judges, legislators, policymakers, media and the public. A national think tank at UCLA Law, the Williams Institute produces high quality research with real-world relevance. For more information, go to: http://www.law.ucla.edu/williamsinstitute/home.html

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Spooky World Theme Park & Movie Memorabilia Estate Sale Oct 8/9/10 2011

Dudley, MA (PRWEB) September 27, 2011

Consignworks, Inc. is pleased to announce the estate sale of David Bertolino, Producer, and former owner of the Spooky World Theme Park in Berlin, MA. This private collection contains thousands of unique and collectible items covering the horror genre and many other items of interest. This three day event will offer an extensive collection of one-of-a-kind items, collectibles and memorabilia.

There are vintage pinball machines, a comic book collection with hundreds of items, Victorian and vintage clothing, over one thousand Halloween costumes, novelty jewelry, autographed pictures and props, haunted house displays, original movie posters, statues, novelties, and tens of thousands of other wonderful items.

Spooky World was created in 1991 by David Bertolino. Since its inception, it has grown into the Northeast?s largest horror theme park and featured shows, celebrities and entertainment. David sold the Spooky World brand in 2005 and is now engaged in producing off-Broadway plays and other television productions.

The sale will be held on Columbus Day weekend, October 8th, 9th and 10th from 9AM to 3PM daily at 37 Brewster Road in Sudbury, MA. There will be many giveaways, promotions and fun surprises. A portion of proceeds will benefit Pediatric Cancer charities. All credit cards will be accepted. Pictures and sale information is available at http://www.spookyworldestatesale.com.

Consignworks is New England?s premier estate sale company, with main offices and a retail gallery in Dudley, MA. In addition to managing estate sales, Consignworks also runs non-profit fundraisers and has supplied furniture and props to Dreamworks and other studios for movie productions. Consignworks is on the web at http://www.consignworks.com or by telephone at (781) 591-3003.

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IHT World Launches Dental Tourism Services For Low Cost Quality Dental Treatment

LeClaire, IA (PRWEB) January 18, 2012

Dental Tourism services are now available as an option that gives Americans the opportunity to have expensive dental services completed outside the United States, at a much lower cost.

Americans can potentially save thousands of dollars, yet enjoy the same high quality dental treatment they would receive in the United States.

There is no question that a multitude of Americans cannot afford the high cost of major dental services. That?s why IHT World is adding customized dental tourism services that will help reduce treatment costs, without compromising quality.

For example: The average cost for a dental implant in the United States is around $ 2,800. If you needed four implants, the total price will be approximately $ 11,200.

Using the dental tourism option, the cost is reduced to an average of $ 1,000 per implant. If you add in the cost of airline tickets for two and hotel cost for four days, the total cost is approximately $ 5,700. This produces an estimated savings of more than $ 5,000 from what it would cost in the U.S.

Due to the growing popularity of dental tourism, IHT World expects many Americans who have inadequate dental insurance to take advantage of this cost saving opportunity.

For additional details go to http://www.ihtworld.com/dental_tourism.html

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