MCPHS Team Provides Vision, Dental, and Acupuncture Care for Veterans

Students and faculty from three programs provide care to veterans at Worcester's annual Stand Down.

Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) optometry students and faculty set a school record for vision screenings at the 21st Veterans Inc. Stand Down event in Worcester, completing 36 screenings, up from 35 the previous year.

“That may not sound like a lot, but it is for vision screenings, which take time,” said Associate Dean for Research and optometry professor Dr. Larry Baitch, working with Assistant Professor Leonard Catardo to supervise their students.

The event was held on June 12 at the Historic National Guard Armory, and on the field at Gateway Park on Grove Street, just minutes from MCPHS’s Worcester campus. It brought together more than 500 veterans and their families for the annual resource fair organized by Veterans Inc., a nonprofit that provides services to veterans across New England. About 150 providers and employers participated, offering on-site access to healthcare screenings, housing and employment resources, personal care items, haircuts, and other support.

Students and faculty from the Forsyth School of Dental Hygiene and the New England School of Acupuncture (NESA) joined their optometry cohorts to provide clinical services throughout the day. Dental Hygiene students carried out oral screenings and handed out dental care kits. Associate Dean Dr. Tracye Moore and Assistant Professor Robert Smethers, an Air Force vet himself, led the team.

Nine acupuncture students got involved, too, performing ear-needling techniques with faculty guidance from Maria Broderick and Linda Thomas. Across all three programs, students made sure veterans knew about the services they can find at the University’s Eye and Vision Center, NESA Acupuncture Treatment Centers and the Forsyth Dental Hygiene Clinic.

Students and faculty from MCPHS’s Boston campus are scheduled to participate in another Stand Down event on Sept. 11 at Boston City Hall Plaza, organized by the New England Center and Home for Veterans.