Annual Report

Annual General Meeting 2025

June 24th, 2025

This year marks Strathcona Community Dental Clinic’s 23-years in operation. Throughout those years we have been able to provide countless low-income families, children and seniors with access to reliable dental resources and care. We continue to strive and adapt for paving the way to a better tomorrow in dental prevention and health.

General Information on Services 

Since October 2002 the Strathcona Health Society has provided quality dental care to the families of Strathcona, the Downtown East side and the Lower Mainland, helping those who really need it most. Our dentists and staff remain committed to providing the best care for those who face many barriers accessing dental care. A large part of the work we do is public education through community outreach, helping families access the information and care they need. At this time the clinic is open to children under the age of 19 years and their families, as well for seniors over the age of 65 years.

Major Developments this Year

Demographics

5 year comparison – 40% of patients seen in 2024 are children under 19 vs 35% 2019. We saw 60 new child patients in 2024 vs 48 in 2019. Our goal is to reach at least 60% child patients. We are doing a lot more outreach projects in the schools these past few years and the majority of our outreach projects focus on kids. The demographics in the community have shifted, there is a lot wealthier single-family units moving into the area. We are also noticing there are a lot of new refugees and immigrants to the community. Our outreach coordinator has made up some separate info sheets and handouts in various languages and forms. Our main leaflet is now in 4 written languages and our website now offers 26 written languages to access information.

GIC Savings – $100,000 for 30 days lockout 1-year cashable GIC at 3%. Instead of our emergency savings just sitting quietly, the board decided to enter it into a GIC to earn interest.

Canadian Dental Care Plan

October 1, 2022, the Canadian Dental Care Plan came into effect.

As of May 29, 2025 the CDCP’s applications opened to all eligible Canadians. There has also been a renewal process for existing clients of the plan. We have been reminding all our current patients to renew. Most of our existing senior patients qualified for the plan and have enrolled.

The fee guide for the CDCP covers about 86% of the current BC fee guide. We are charging patients based on the CDCP fee guide as we do with the provincial ministry plans. The Canada Dental Benefit is provided through reimbursed payments directly to dental clinics.

All 5 of our dentists are approved providers under the CDCP.

Current Dentists

Currently we have 5 dentists working at the clinic, 3 of which are new to the practice. Dr. Gurpreet Bhatia, Dr. Mamta Mehta and Dr. Bora Han. Dr. Anita Orendi has been working with us since 2003 and Dr. Wong has been working with the clinic since 2018.

In the past year Dr. Ali Salari, Dr. Esther Jang, Dr. Yoonjeong Ji, Dr. Farinaz Freidouni also worked with us but has moved onto to other offices. We thank them for the time they spent working with us.

Krosang’s Retirement

Krosang gave her formal resignation for her retirement in March 2025. Her last day of work will be July 15, 2025. She has offered to stay longer if we have not found a replacement by then. Erin has spoken to Cindy about transitioning into Krosang’s role as this would be ideal. Cindy has accepted to transition to the front desk position only if her hourly rate would be increased to $34. Krosang helped open the office and saw the very first patients Strathcona treated back in October 2002, she will be greatly missed as her role at the clinic has been substantial. We will host a small gathering on the afternoon of her last day and present a retirement gift to her.

Equipment Upgrades, Installation and Repair

Equipment upgrades

In September 2024, 6 new high speed hand pieces were purchased using the BCDA equipment grant. The dentists were very happy as it improves efficiency and ergonomics for them.

On Jan 3, 2025, two new sets of patient chairs, doctor stools and assistant stools were delivered and installed. After years of having donated chairs, it is nice to have access to new chairs. The BCDA’s equipment grant played a large role in getting these chairs.

Computer upgrades

Server upgraded with 2 new monitors and additional tower for ED’s office on Nov 20, 2024. We will need to upgrade other computer towers this fall when the big Windows 11 rollout finishes.

Funding and Grants

Continued Funding for Non-Profit Clinics from the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction

In continuing with previous commitments announced in 2018, the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction, has awarded grants to non-profit dental clinics in British Columbia for the purposes of operating costs, equipment purchase, and personal protective equipment purchase.

Operating Grant

An operating grant of $25,000 has been awarded, we received the funds on May 28, 2025. Since 2019, the Ministry has provided operating grants totalling $155,000 to the Strathcona Health Society.

Capital Equipment Grant

The total grant money awarded from the Capital Equipment grant was $32,770.08 for 2024, we are truly grateful for this opportunity. A request for 2 overhead light replacements was submitted and approved in May 2025 for the amount of $7,314 plus tax.

Direct Access Grant

The application for the 2025 Direct Access Community Gaming Grant was submitted on Nov 19, 2024, for the requested amount of $40,000 as such in past years. Unfortunately, the grant was reduced to $30,000 for the second year in a row. An appeal was submitted in February 2025 but was rejected.

TD Community Funding Grant

Erin applied for a 5-year grant to TD Community Funding Grant to cover the expenses of our hygiene pouches and “Flossing Friday’s” floss stick program. The requested amount is $5,564.00 each year for a total amount of $27,820 over 5 years. On October 4, 2024, we received an email that application was not approved.

Oral Health Access Fund Grant

An expression of interest was submitted on July 30, 2024, in the amount of $84,100 over a 3-year span to fund outreach projects and wages. The fund aims to expand access to oral health care by supporting projects that reduce or remove non-financial barriers to accessing oral health care for targeted populations. The expression of interest was accepted into the second phase of the grant submission but due to a very extensive submission process and ongoing reporting process with major time constraints the society was not able to meet the deadline application. At the NFP Conference in Feb 2025, it was mentioned that applications will be open yearly to approve new projects.

Student Education at the Strathcona Community Dental Clinic

VCC Dental Hygiene Students 

We hosted the VCC dental hygiene students earlier this year for 6 separate days through January to April and treated 20 child patients overall. This rotation is crucial in the hygiene curriculum, giving students the opportunity to work with children. We will again be hosting them in the new year; it was our 19th year hosting them in our clinic.

VCC Practicum Students

We hosted a CDA practicum student from VCC for 3 rotations or 1 week, 2 weeks and 3 weeks from October 2024 to June 2025. We also hosted 2 separate VCC receptionist practicum students for 2 weeks each in December 2024 and April 2025.

Hosting UBC Students

Dr. Leeann Donnelly, Director of Community Engagement, Associate Professor with her colleague, Dr. Mario Brondani, Professor & Director of Dental Public Health from UBC got in contact with us about having the UBC students back in our clinic as they have done in past years before the covid-19 pandemic. We have entered a 5-year contract that commenced January 1, 2024. 6 students visited the clinic on March 12, 2025, to have a brief info session on our model of care and operations. They gave us a $200 Uber Eats gift card as thanks, and a staff lunch was held in May.

UBC Pre-Dental Club

Johnny has continued our connection to the UBC Pre-Dental club students. Most of our current active volunteers are part of this club.

Meetings and Conferences

Pacific Dental Conference

Erin, Johnny and 7 Volunteers hosted a complimentary booth for SHS at the 2025 PDC. There were almost 15,000 attendees. We connected with Dentists and other oral health care professionals to raise awareness about our clinic and try to find new Dentists to employ permanently. We received a large donation of gloves for the third year in a row from Supermax.

BCDA Not for Profit Workshop

Vicky and Erin attended the annual NFP conference with other BC NFP dental clinics hosted by the BCDA on Feb 7, 2025. Erin was one of this year’s presenters. She shared a brief, lighthearted history of the clinic, where we are today, our sustainability and where we are headed. There were numerous presenters, and many good examples were given of tools for successful visits for patients living with disability. Team-centered and trauma informed care was also discussed as it plays a crucial role in reducing barriers for patients accessing dental care.

VDDS Spring Meeting

Erin & Johnny attended the Vancouver & District Dental Society boutique conference on May 2 hosted at the Fairmount Waterfront Hotel. It was a lot less busy than last year so they may switch back to hosting it in the winter. We spoke to many student volunteers, some of which volunteer already with us and 2 dentists that seemed interested in joining our clinic.

Community Outreach

This year Erin and Johnny worked very hard along side volunteers to do a ton of outreach in the community. Our outreach projects mainly focus on children in the local community in efforts of bringing the number of children seen at our clinic higher and making them the majority of patients seen.

Johnny has edited our leaflet/pamphlet to include Arabic and Spanish in addition to the existing English and Chinese. 2000 pamphlets have been printed and 1000 were delivered to non-market housing in the area with families, we are hoping to do more leafletting over the summer with volunteers.

Day Camps, Youth Programs and Community Events

Our OutReach Manager and volunteers organize a series of dental workshops throughout the year, aimed at promoting oral health and preventive care. These events provide attendees with valuable information on dental hygiene, access to government programs, and available funding options for dental services. Each participant receives a complimentary dental care kit containing essentials such as toothpaste, a toothbrush, floss sticks, additional floss samples, and informational pamphlets on preventive dental care and clinic services. The workshops may also feature engaging dental-themed games and crafts, creating an interactive and educational experience for all ages.

List of all community dental workshops SHS hosted this past year

• July 22, 2024 – Strathcona Community Center Day Camp
• July 23, 2024 – Budzy Raincity Housing Project
• August 13, 2024 – Strathcona Community Policing Youth Group Presentation at Maclean Park
• December 7, 2024 – Strathcona Community Center Santa Breakfast
• December 23, 2024 – Strathcona Community Center Winter Day Camp
• March 25, 2025 – Maclean Park Resident Event
• April 15, 2025 – Strathcona Community Center CAP-C Visit
• April 19, 2025 – Strathcona Community Center Easter Family Event
• May 5, 2025 – Urban Native Youth Association Partnership
• May 16, 2025 – Grandview Terrace Resident Event
• June 12, 2025 – RayCam Community Center Youth Night
• June 5, 2025 – RayCam Community Center Family Night

Strathcona Community Center’s Backpack Program

A rotating schedule with volunteers to attend the backpack program once per month has been in place for the past 2 years. The Backpack program is run by the Strathcona Community Centre food programs; they provide fresh produce and other various food items to low-income families in the community. We have a table set up, the volunteers share info about oral health, our clinic and also access to funding. We have a morning and afternoon shift, both with 2 volunteers for each shift.

Other Outreach Projects in the Local Community

May Wah Seniors Residents Dental Screening Event

June 27 2024 – Erin was contacted by an NYC student who is part of a mentorship program and grew up in Vancouver to partner with the May Wah Hotel Senior Residence to host a free dental screening and share information about the new CDCP. Dr. Liz Johnson-Lee volunteered accompanied by Erin, Johnny and some students saw 12 seniors for screenings. One of the students of mentorship program ran a fundraiser campaign selling sticker sheets to raise funds for our clinic and donated $1,000.

October 16, 2025, we had Dr. Ali and Dr. Farinaz both work so we could see the seniors from the dental screening and provide needed care. We saw 10 seniors, in collaboration with the high-school mentorship program, they had a van and transported the seniors to and from our clinic. They would also like to raise funds to provide dental hygiene pouches to the 700 kids at Britannia Secondary School in future.

Youth Group Clinic Fieldtrip – July 16, 2025

The Strathcona Community Policing Centre runs a summer day camp program for kids residing in BC housing in the area. 25 kids age 8-16 visited the clinic for a tour and presentations. Dr. Orendi, the staff and 2 volunteers participated. Hygiene pouches with full size toothpaste were provided to each child. A dental workshop was provided at the Maclean Park BC Housing site to the same group in August 2024.

Outreach Projects in the Local Schools

Flossing Fridays

In June 2023 we launched our first classroom phase into our floss stick program. Each Friday the students use the floss sticks provided to practice flossing after lunch. Helping to develop and promote healthy preventative dental habits. The floss stick cards are being delivered to the teachers on a weekly basis, while collecting feedback throughout the year. We have also spoken to Admiral Seymour Elementary about participating in the program as well.

Hygiene Pouches

This year we included an insert that has 2 QR code links to the BC Healthy Kids coverage and the Canadian Dental Care Plan. It’s nice to know that every elementary age child in the community will have a new clean toothbrush at least once per year thanks to us!

Erin had 4 volunteers come for two separate shifts in August and prepared 640 pouches. 160 pouches were delivered to Admiral Seymour school and 480 delivered to Lord Strathcona school in late September to kick off the new school year.

Welcome to Kindergarten – Lord Strathcona Elementary

June 4, 2025 – we attended the event as we do every year to connect with new parents offering information about our clinic and access to funding. 65 kids attended the welcome event and about half of them stopped at our booth and received a pamphlet about the clinic. We spoke to around 12 families more in depth. Some teachers already showed interest in having a field trip to the clinic with their classes in the coming school year.

Strathcona Elementary Grade 1 Field Trip

February 25, 2025 – A Grade 1 class of 18 students visited our clinic for an educational and engaging dental experience. Each student received a goodie bag containing dental floss, toothpaste, and a toothbrush. The visit included a guided tour of the clinic, a dental-themed educational video, and an in-depth exploration of the operatory and its equipment.

This visit provided a valuable opportunity to introduce children to the dental environment in a positive and fear-free way. Additionally, the classroom teacher enrolled in our “Flossing Fridays” program. To support daily oral hygiene habits, a second set of toothbrushes was provided for classroom use, allowing students to brush together after lunch under the teacher’s guidance.

Free Dental Screenings

December 6, 2024 – Admiral Seymour Elementary School – Dr. Liz Johnson Lee and Dr. Ali Salari with volunteers saw 24 students, 4 of which needed treatment in the near future to avoid urgent care. Our goal is to provide a free screening yearly to the school.

May 27, 2025 – Lord Strathcona Elementary School – Dr. Liz Johnson-Lee with 3 volunteers saw 30 kids. Another screening will be booked in October when the new school year begins.

Donations and Special Support

2024 Donations

We had a goal of $20,200 for donations last year and we got over our target with our final number coming in at $25,943 vs $23,835 in 2024.

Fundraising Letter Campaign

Our annual Fundraising Letters to dentists were taken to the post office November 9, 2024. Thankfully ahead of this postal strike. Burnaby Dentists were included this year and a total of 1,100 letters were mailed. 7 volunteers helped to stuff over 3 days. Friday Nov 8th, they stayed until 8pm to finish so I ordered them pizza. Thanks to this campaign we were able to surpass our fundraising goal for 2024!

Fluoride Varnish Donation

Another large donation of fluoride varnish was received which will be our third year offering free fluoride varnish application to ministry patients because the adult ministry does not cover that expense.

Nature’s Path Fundraising Campaign

In March of 2025 an employee fundraiser was launched with Nature’s Path. So far, we have raised $425 that will be matched by Nature’s Path when the fundraiser ends. We have also received 1600 full size toothpaste, around 200 toothbrushes and 20 floss. These have been well received in donations at community events, dental screenings and dental pouches provided to local schools.

VCC Hygiene Student Fundraiser

The Div 3 Vancouver Community College Hygiene students did a Kernels popcorn fundraiser raising $900 and also raised an additional $4,100 totalling $5,050 for the clinic that was presented to our ED on June 13, 2024.

Birthday Fundraiser

Our ED, Erin had her annual online birthday fundraiser through Facebook that generated $467

Donor’s Recognition

We would like to thank all of our donors as every little bit counts, but also a big thanks to some of our larger donors;

Dr. Marcy Schwartzman and her Smiles for Life Foundation. Dr. Doreen Laszlo’s Caldor Foundation. Rob and Dr. Debra Mitchell and Dr. Jensen Wong one of the dentists that works at the clinic and donates 1 month of his salary from the clinic back to us. We would also like to thank our monthly donors Dr. Daniel Ma and Dr. Cameron Robson. Lastly, a huge thank you to the Div 3 Hygiene students at VCC for raising $5,050 for donation to the clinic.

The People Who Make It All Work

The Executive Director

Erin Riddell has now served as the Executive Director for just shy of 3 years; she finds the job challenging yet rewarding. Her favorite part of the job is participating in the community outreach projects and building connections within the community.

The Staff & Dentists

We would like to sincerely thank the Strathcona Community Dental Clinic staff and dentists, who have been essential to the success of our organization. The Dentists who have worked at the Clinic in 2024 and 2025: Dr. Anita Orendi, Dr. Jensen Wong, Dr. Yoonjeong Ji, Dr. Esther Jang, Dr. Ali Salari, Dr. Farinaz Freidouni and Dr. Gurpreet Bhatia, we thank them for their ongoing passion and dedication towards the clinic. We would also like to thank Dr. Cindy Neufeld and Dr. Sandy Nghiem for filling in on days our dentists were away.

We would also like to thank our Office Coordinator and Certified Dental Assistant Krosang Lee and Certified Dental Assistant Cindy Xie, who do a wonderful job caring for the patients at the Strathcona Community Dental Clinic.

The Board

The Strathcona Health Society Board has a strong membership that represent dental professionals, the Strathcona neighbourhood, the community at large and the areas of health care, research and law.

In September of 2024 Vicki Scully officially joined the Board of Directors for SHS. In April 2025 Caroline Brunt informed the board of her resignation from the board of directors. We are very grateful for the time Caroline spent on the board serving the SHS since January of 2023.

A big thank you to all our Board Members for your dedication to the work of the Strathcona Health Society. Thank you to Board Members: Dr. Rosamund Harrison, Alissa Li, Kirby Smith, Dr. Murielle Arsenault and Vicki Scully.