Hawaii - West Hawaii Community Health Center (Keiki Health Center) - PEDS

***This location cannot accept candidates graduating from Canadian dental schools due to state licensure requirements.***

Treating ethnically diverse children.  West Hawaii Community Health Center (WHCHC) serves the West Hawaii communities on the Big Island from Kawaihae to Hawaiian Ocean View Estates (covering 80 miles of coastline, roughly twice the size of Oahu, with 60,000 residents).  The Center strives to be the provider of choice for all residents in our service area, and continues to grow its programs and services to better serve this community.  With 47,150 patient visits in 2013, and over 11,000 established patients, WHCHC continues to accept new patients.  Residents work closely with pediatric dental faculty and practitioners at two of our of health center locations to hone skills and develop practice protocols that are unique to treating pediatric patients who are ethnically diverse.  In Kealakekua, the Keiki Oral Health Program provides comprehensive dental services for children infant through 17 years old. Residents receive their pediatric dental clinical training, serving the community by caring for patients in community health centers in collaboration with medical staff. Affiliated hospitals provide hospital and medical rotations required for specialty training. It is emphasized that expenses for travel which include moving for the duration of your rotation on the islands of Maui or Hawaii, living, food, transportation and travel on the neighbor islands must be covered by the resident. Rotations on Oahu community health center sites include Saturday and Sunday assignments. Mandatory literature review, resident meetings, and other didactic assignments, which include presentations may be assigned on weekends or after clinical hours.