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Support Coordination Agencies are helping New Jersey families find providers for the many services a person with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) might need — including dental care. About 130 SC Agencies are licensed by the state’s Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) and Medicaid, among them Disability Navigators.
Elizabeth Dalzell is Director of Community Outreach & Communications for Disability Navigators. Like her, most employees have a loved one with I/DD. That lived experience, along with professional credentials, sets the agency apart, she says.
Elizabeth Dalzell’s 31-year-old daughter, Liesl, was on a 2-years-long waitlist for routine dental care when Elizabeth learned about Special Smiles.
“We really bond with the families we are serving because we are walking the path together,” Elizabeth says. “The empathy and understanding we have allows us to provide a personal touch.”
She was surprised and delighted to find that same deep level of understanding when she brought her daughter, Liesl, to Special Smiles. “Our experience was undoubtedly the best we have ever had from any practitioner,” she says. “Every individual in that practice has worked with those who have I/DD. Not having to explain myself or my child – that was priceless.”
A lifelong advocate for people with I/DD, Elizabeth was appointed by the Governor to serve on the New Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities (NJCDD) and chairs the NJCDD Health & Wellness Committee. During her 30-year career, she witnessed the DDD redevelop its programming for adults with I/DD and saw the state privatize care management by licensing SC Agencies. Both were great leaps forward for families.
None of that solved the lack of access to dental care, however. “There was a dire shortage of dentists who had operating room privileges at hospitals, which is required to treat patients like my daughter who need general anesthesia even for a cleaning,” Elizabeth explains. “When you did finally get an appointment, you had to traipse through a huge parking lot and navigate a five-story hospital with a patient who has ambulatory issues.”
Then, in 2023, Special Smiles was approved to treat Medicaid patients in New Jersey. “I can’t even tell you what a gem this is,” Elizabeth says. “You can get an appointment in six to eight weeks. You drive up to the door, where staff members assist in getting your loved one into the first-floor facility. Inside, they ratchet down the anxiety even more with private waiting rooms that have a TV, a sensory board, a rocking chair and dimmable lights. These are simple accommodations that other facilities don’t even think of.”
Families working with Disability Navigators are made aware that Special Smiles may be an option to explore for dental care at any age and that a single annual visit is usually enough for both routine care and any procedures that might be needed, from a filling to oral surgery.
“Knowing that Special Smiles is serving our families warms my heart,” Elizabeth says.
