Bright Smiles Community Dental

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Executive Summary

Bright Smiles Community Dental is a nonprofit in Mississippi that provides affordable dental care for children and adults who are uninsured or have low incomes. A licensed dentist, a hygienist and dental assistants see patients on a sliding fee scale, and a patient navigator helps people understand treatment, find insurance and keep appointments.

Many people in our area go years without seeing a dentist and wait until pain sends them to an emergency room. With this grant we will pay for dental supplies and a patient navigator. Care is provided only by licensed professionals within their license. We cannot promise any treatment result, and in an emergency patients should call 911.

What we are asking for. Our program has a Year 1 budget of about $329,500. We are asking for $75,000 from a county health foundation to dental supplies and a patient navigator salary. The rest of the budget comes from other grants, sponsors and donors that are listed in the funding section. Every dollar amount in this plan is an estimate and none of it is a promise of any result for the people we serve.

Company Description

Bright Smiles Community Dental is a nonprofit organization recognized under section 501(c)(3) of the tax code, governed by a volunteer board that includes a dentist and patients. The board meets monthly, approves the budget and oversees the executive director. A new organization without its own determination letter can use a fiscal sponsor, explained in the funding section.

What we believe. Oral health is part of overall health, and every person deserves dignity when they come for care. We charge fairly, tell patients the truth about treatment and never refuse care because of inability to pay.

What we do:
- Preventive and basic dental care. Exams, cleanings, X-rays, fillings and extractions by licensed professionals.
- Sliding fee scale. Fees are based on income and family size.
- Patient navigation. A navigator explains treatment plans, helps with insurance and Medicaid and schedules follow-ups.
- Education. Short lessons on brushing, diet and caring for children's teeth.

Scope and licensing. A licensed dentist supervises care, and hygienists and assistants work within their licenses. We follow the state's dental rules and infection control standards. We refer patients who need specialty care to specialists.

Who we serve. Uninsured and underinsured children and adults in our service area, with priority for patients with low incomes.

Our board has at least five members, including at least one person who has used our services or lives in the community we serve, and only a minority of board members may be related to each other or paid by the organization.

We keep a written conflict of interest policy, a whistleblower policy and a record retention policy, and the board reviews them every year.

Problem & Opportunity

Many people cannot get the dental care they need.

1. Few dentists accept public insurance or uninsured patients in our area.
2. Cost. Even basic care can be too costly without insurance.
3. Transportation. Rural patients may live far from a dental office.
4. Emergency room visits. People with tooth pain often go to emergency rooms, which cannot fix the underlying problem.
5. Complicated systems. Patients struggle with forms, insurance and follow-up.

Why it matters now. Poor oral health is linked with problems in heart health, diabetes and pregnancy, and it affects work and school.

How we know the need is real. We reviewed dental access data for our county, counted emergency room visits for dental pain, surveyed 120 residents and talked with clinics. Residents told us they delay care because of cost and fear, and clinics told us they refer patients with nowhere to go. We also learned that many patients stop treatment after the first visit because of rides, work schedules or confusion about bills, which is why a navigator is part of the plan. The numbers are in the appendix.

We update these facts every year using public data, partner reports and what the people we serve tell us, and we change the program when the facts change. If a need turns out to be smaller than we thought, we will say so and put the money where it is needed most.

Products & Services

What the funded project will do. With this grant we will pay for dental supplies and a patient navigator for a full year.

How a patient takes part:
1. Call or walk-in. A patient calls or comes to the clinic and meets the navigator.
2. Eligibility and fees. The navigator explains the sliding fee scale and helps with insurance and Medicaid applications.
3. Exam and plan. A dentist examines the patient and explains a treatment plan and costs in plain language.
4. Care. The team provides preventive care and basic treatment in sequence.
5. Follow-up. The navigator reminds the patient of appointments and helps with transportation information.
6. Referral. Patients who need specialty care are referred to specialists.

What the grant pays for. The request covers dental supplies and sterilization materials and the navigator's salary.

What we do not promise. We do not promise that any patient will keep every tooth or avoid future problems. We track patients served and treatment completed and report honestly.

Safety. We follow infection control rules, use sterile instruments and keep an emergency plan. We call 911 for emergencies. Patient information is private under health privacy laws, and we report suspected abuse as the law requires.

We start small, check what works and grow only when we can do the work well. Every few months we review the numbers and the stories from the people we serve and change the plan where it is not working.

We write plain-language handouts for every step so people know what to expect, what it costs and who to call with questions, and we ask each person at the end whether the help was useful and what we could do better.

Market Analysis

Who benefits from this project are children and adults in our service area who are uninsured or on low incomes.

Who we serve. Families, older adults and workers without dental insurance, many covered by Medicaid and many with no coverage at all.

How many people we plan to serve. In Year 1 we plan to serve about 900 patients with about 2,200 visits. By Year 5 we plan to serve about 2,000 patients a year. We chose these numbers from the capacity of two chairs at first, with more staff in later years.

Where we serve. The county and neighboring rural counties, with a clinic near bus lines.

Who else benefits. Employers whose workers miss less work, emergency rooms with fewer dental visits and children who do better in school.

How we will be careful. We keep patient information private, obtain informed consent and charge only what we have posted.

We choose how many people to serve from the number of staff, hours and rooms we really have, not from the size of the need. If we reach fewer people than planned, we will report it and explain why.

Competitive Landscape

Other choices in our area.

1. Federally qualified health centers. Offer dental care but can have long waits.
2. Private dentists. Many do not accept public insurance.
3. Dental school clinics. Offer reduced fees but may be far away.
4. Free dental events. Offer care occasionally but not follow-up.
5. Emergency rooms, which relieve pain but do not provide dental treatment.

What makes us different. We offer regular, sliding-scale care with a navigator to help patients keep appointments. We work with health centers and refer patients to them when they have space.

How we avoid duplication. We meet with the health centers and the health department each quarter to share capacity and referrals.

We keep a written list of every other organization that does similar work in our area and review it each year. If another group can serve a person better, we refer the person and say so plainly. Funders can expect us to tell the truth about overlap, to share what we learn and to work as part of a larger network of help.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How we will reach patients once the project is funded.

Referral partners. Clinics, schools, churches, food pantries and the health department will refer patients.

Community events. Health fairs and church events where we share information.

Word of mouth. Patients tell family and friends. With permission, we share anonymous stories.

Digital outreach. A website and social media will explain fees, hours and how to book. We will not post patients' pictures without written permission.

Access. Materials will be in plain language and in English and Spanish, hours will include evenings and we will share transportation information.

Measuring outreach. We will track how each patient heard about us and adjust our outreach where it is not working. We will also ask patients at checkout what almost kept them from coming, such as cost, rides or fear, and use their answers to change our hours, our fees and our reminders.

Marketing budget. Outreach and printing are part of the program budget.

Most people hear about services from someone they already trust, so we spend more time with partners and neighbors than on advertising. We write our materials in plain language, test them with a few people from the community and fix anything that confuses them.

Operations Plan

How the project will be carried out, in plain terms.

Timeline for Year 1. Months 1 and 2: hire staff, install equipment, finish licensing and sign partner agreements. Months 3 to 12: see patients on a set schedule and hold quarterly community events.

Space. A clinic with two dental chairs, a sterilization room, a reception area and a private room for the navigator.

Partners. A supervising dentist, health centers, the health department and insurance enrollment helpers. Each has a written agreement.

Clinical, safety and privacy rules. Care is provided by licensed professionals within their license. We follow infection control standards, log sterilizer tests, keep an emergency plan and call 911 for emergencies. Records are secure and private. Fees are posted and applied fairly.

Money controls. The dentist is paid by contract and two people review every payment. Insurance is billed only for services we deliver.

Records and reporting. We track patients served, visits and outcomes and report to funders each quarter.

Training. Staff receive training in infection control, patient communication and cultural humility.

We write down every step of the project in a short manual so that any trained staff member can carry it out the same way. We hold a short team meeting every week to review problems, safety concerns and numbers, and we ask the people we serve for feedback at least twice a year.

Management & Organization

The executive director leads the organization and manages the budget and partners. The licensed hygienist and dental assistants deliver care under the supervising dentist, and the patient navigator helps patients with insurance and appointments.

The team. Pay figures include payroll taxes and workers' compensation insurance. The numbers in parentheses are how many people we plan to have in Years 1 through 5.
- Executive Director: 1, 1, 1, 1, 1 (Years 1 to 5), about $60,000 a year each.
- Licensed Dental Hygienist: 1, 1, 1, 2, 2 (Years 1 to 5), about $70,000 a year each.
- Dental Assistant: 1, 2, 2, 2, 2 (Years 1 to 5), about $44,000 a year each.
- Patient Navigator: 1, 1, 1, 1, 2 (Years 1 to 5), about $40,000 a year each.

Governance and money controls. A volunteer board of directors oversees the budget and the executive director. Two people review every payment, the board reviews financial statements every month, an outside accountant prepares the yearly tax return and audit-ready records, and every grant is tracked in its own budget line. We screen staff and volunteers who work with the people we serve, train everyone on privacy and safety and keep written policies on conflicts of interest and complaints.

Staff and advisors. The hygienist holds the license required in Mississippi and the dentist reviews all protocols. An advisory group of a dentist, a patient, a nurse and a pastor meets quarterly.

Feedback and complaints. Anyone we serve can give feedback or a complaint by phone, in writing or in person, and can ask to speak with the board chair. We reply within five working days, keep a log of every complaint and report the themes to the board each quarter. No one loses services for speaking up.

Milestones Narrative

Goals for each of the first five years and how we will measure results. These are goals, not promises.
- Before the grant starts (3 to 4 months before the grant starts): hire staff, install equipment, finish licensing and sign the supervising dentist and partner agreements
- Year 1: serve about 900 patients with about 2,200 visits. The budget is $329,500.
- Year 2: add a second assistant and evening hours. The budget is $380,000.
- Year 3: add a second hygienist and school outreach. The budget is $386,000.
- Year 4: grow patient volume and insurance participation. The budget is $464,000.
- Year 5: serve about 2,000 patients a year and publish a plain results report. The budget is $511,500.

How we will measure results: patients served, visits, treatment plans completed, patients who keep follow-up appointments, emergency visits avoided as reported by patients and patient satisfaction. We report results to funders in the same plain numbers we use here, and we say honestly when a goal was missed and what we changed.

We report to funders every quarter and send a short plain-language summary to our board each month. At the end of each year we review all of the goals, publish a short results report and update the plan for the next year.

Funding Request

What we are asking for, and how the money will be used. Our request: $75,000 from a county health foundation for dental supplies and a patient navigator salary, for January through December 2027.

The request is spread across these budget lines:
- Supplies: Dental supplies and sterilization materials, $40,000 (other funds add $5,000).
- Personnel: Patient Navigator salary, $35,000.

Other money in the program. This request is about 29% of our Year 1 grant income. Other grants and the income lines below pay for everything it does not cover.

Year 1 budget: about $329,500, planned to balance with a small surplus (about $12,500 after the yearly wear on equipment). Year 1 money coming in: grant revenue $261,500; individual donations $28,000; sliding-Scale patient fees and insurance $40,000. Year 1 costs: executive director $60,000; licensed dental hygienist $70,000; dental assistant $44,000; patient navigator $40,000; contracted dentist services about $40,000; dental supplies and sterilization materials about $30,000; equipment maintenance about $12,000; administration and insurance about $18,000.

One-time startup costs. Startup costs of $29,400 are paid once from startup money, not from the yearly budget: $9,000 for two dental chairs with units, lights and delivery, $6,000 for sterilizer, compressor and vacuum system, $5,000 for opening supplies and instruments, $3,600 for licenses, radiation and infection control compliance, $3,600 for practice management software and legal setup, and $2,200 for sign, flyers and a simple website.

How we got our startup number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds the startup costs ($29,400), the cash the program uses before it balances (about $1,000) and a cash cushion of about $78,500, which is about 3 months of Year 1 costs. In all, that comes to $109,000. We start with $24,000 of our own savings and $86,500 in startup support from a local foundation and our board, $110,500 in all, which covers that amount with room to spare.

The next five years. Our budget grows from about $329,500 in Year 1 to about $511,500 in Year 5. Grants are planned at $261,500, $288,000, $270,000, $324,000, $347,500 in Years 1 to 5. Other income grows as sponsors and donors join. The program plans a small surplus each year, about $12,500, $13,200, $13,000, $14,500 and $15,300 in Years 1 to 5, which we put into savings.

Savings. We plan to keep several months of costs in savings. The lowest year-end balance in the plan is about $94,500, at the end of Year 1. Some grant payments and partner payments arrive after we bill, so we plan for about $16,475 owed to us at the end of Year 1.

After the grant. Individual donors and patient fees and insurance reimbursements grow each year, so grants become a smaller share. Local employers and hospitals may contribute funds over time.

Risks and how we will handle them:
- A key dentist may leave. We contract with more than one dentist.
- Patients may miss visits. The navigator sends reminders and helps with rides.
- A grant may end. We grow donors and fees each year and keep savings.
- Equipment may fail. We budget for maintenance and have backup arrangements.
- A privacy or infection control problem could occur. We follow strict protocols.

If you are just starting. A new organization can begin before it has its own 501(c)(3) status through a fiscal sponsor: an established nonprofit that receives grants for you and passes them to your program, usually for a fee (commonly around 5% to 10% of the grant, sometimes more; ask before you agree). Another way is to start smaller with one site or one staff member and track results carefully. Strong results from a small start make larger grants easier to win.

Appendix Notes

Documents to attach before you send this proposal:

- Your IRS determination letter showing 501(c)(3) status, or your fiscal sponsor agreement.
- Your board list and board minutes approving the application.
- Your most recent budget and financial statements.
- A list of other funders and what each has given or been asked to give.
- Licenses of the dentist and hygienist and your clinic protocols.
- Written agreements with health centers and the health department.
- Your fee scale, consent form and privacy policy.
- Letters of support from patients and partners.
If you don't have any of this yet, no worries - let's continue.

The assumptions behind our numbers (change them in the Financials section to match your own):
- Grant Revenue: $261,500 in Year 1, growing to $347,500 in Year 5.
- Individual Donations: $28,000 in Year 1, growing to $52,000 in Year 5.
- Sliding-Scale Patient Fees and Insurance: $40,000 in Year 1, growing to $112,000 in Year 5.
- Staff pay is shown in the management section and includes payroll taxes and workers' compensation.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: contracted dentist services $40,000, dental supplies and sterilization materials $30,000, equipment maintenance $12,000, and administration and insurance $18,000. These grow between 4% and 6% a year as the program grows.
- Grant and partner payments arrive after we bill, so about $16,475 (5% of Year 1 income) is owed to us at the end of Year 1.
- The program does not pay income tax. Any surplus stays in the program.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your organization's real numbers.

Plain words used in this proposal:
- Grant: money given for a specific purpose that does not have to be paid back, as long as it is spent as promised.
- Request: the part of the budget we are asking this funder to pay for.
- Surplus: money left over after a year's costs. A small surplus is healthy because it builds savings for slow months.
- Startup costs: one-time costs, such as equipment, paid once before the program runs at full speed.
- Working capital: cash kept in the bank to pay bills while waiting for grant payments.
- In-kind: goods or services given instead of money, such as donated space.
- Fiscal sponsor: an established nonprofit that receives grants for a new group and passes the money to its program, usually for a fee.
- 501(c)(3): the tax status that lets a nonprofit receive tax-deductible gifts and many grants.

How to read the numbers. Every income and cost figure is a plan, not a result. Income rises as sponsors and donors join, costs rise a little each year, and each year's budget is planned to balance with a small surplus. Startup costs are shown separately because they are paid once. If a real number turns out different, we will update the plan and tell our funders why.

Startup Costs