MOUNTAIN VIEW, Mo — Good Samaritan Care Clinic is offering free extractions when they can get dentists to volunteer their time.

Waiting over a year for dental care is a tough reality for people in some rural areas.

Waiting lists for some dental clinics have hundreds of names on them, but thanks to some dentists from across the state donating their time, they are cutting into that list at no charge to patients.

Some dentists are volunteering at Good Samaritan Care Clinic.

In 2007, Good Samaritan Care Clinic opened it’s doors, and Clinic Administrator Sheri Noble says since then they have stuck to a simple formula.

“We started providing the service which is most needed — most urgrently needed — which was extractions. We have continued to do that, and it was also the most cost effective thing that we could do to provide relief,” says Noble.

The non-profit clinic provide service for about 28 counties, and that has created huge waiting list — about 1,500 names long.

“We are in a rural health shortage area. There really are not enough dental providers anyway, and most of these patients are uninsured, and they can’t pay out of pocket to go see a dentist for a dental extraction,” Noble says.

Because of that, they have recruited some dentists who drove a long way to provide some help.

One of those dentists is Dr. William Kane from Dexter, MO.

In the 6-plus hours they were open, Dr. Kane and the rest of the team served about 25 patients.

“You can see these patients experience almost immediate relief from pain and infection that have been bothering them for several months,” Kane says.

Noble says those free clinics are gratifying, but it’s not always easy when they aren’t holding them.

“It’s also heartbreaking when someone calls and you tell them they’re going to be placed on a list for about two years before they can get an appointment,” Noble says.

After things were shut down for the day, Bobby Little was told that very thing. She showed up just after they stopped taking patients.

“It’s hard to get good dental care in the area. It’s really hard. I’ve got a tooth back here in the back that is almost completely broke off — level with my gums almost — and it’s starting to bother me. We were hoping we could get something done today, but we were just a little bit late,” says Little.

“This is going to encourage me to talk to my dental colleagues about considering volunteering in clinics like this,” says Dr. Kane.

If you are interested in getting into one of these free clinics, call Good Samaritan Care Clinic in Mountain View at 417-934-6500.