Hello GoFundMe World!

I’m Jevae. 

A bit about me: I am a Missouri native and current fourth year Dental Student at Howard University College of Dentistry in Washington, D.C. I find joy when working with children and am interested the specialty of Dental Public Health.

I was just recently nominated and invited to join the research team at Queen Mary University of London for three weeks in July. In London, along with two other Dental students from Harvard and Arizona State University, I will undertake short research studies that will help strengthen ongoing research projects in the areas of Dental Public Health and International Dentistry.

After a day of calibration, I will spend my first week with the current study of families and children, more specifically, the effect that parents have on caries prevention in children. This will be the final year of a two year preventative intervention designed to enhance parental efficacy in two child oral health-related behaviors: tooth-brushing twice daily with fluoride toothpaste and developing a healthy, low sugar diet for children initially aged 5-6 years. The intervention comprises embedded Behavior Change Techniques (BCT) in 8 inter-linked story books for parents to read to their child at bedtime. The books are to be given to children and families over two school years spaced across two years. The control intervention is the same storybooks without the embedded BCTs. The three groups in the trial are: Group 1: test books; Group 2: control books; Group 3: test books plus brushing at school with fluoridated toothpaste on schooldays and home supplies of toothbrushes and toothpaste. The outcome measure is caries experience two years after baseline assessments. Progress as at May 2015: 1,300 families recruited in 30 primary schools in England; at midpoint of trial; 530 families recruited 26 schools in Scotland, baseline dental exams completed.  By the beginning of the second week I will have already gathered the final research data and will proceed to analyze and asses the findings, relating them back to the projected hypothesis that parental involvement can enhance the efficacy of child oral health-related behaviors.

I will complete the second week further researching and updating an online resource for teachers that was created to support lessons on diseases that are bacterially-mediated and include the importance of hygiene measures to prevent infection. This resource can be viewed online. The Department of Public Health Unit has developed lesson plans for teachers of 5-7 year olds which are informative and include games. My task will be to outline the development of an oral health module for children aged 9-12 years. This will take me about mid-way into my third week.

This opportunity is once in a lifetime! In London I will be working with Dr. Cynthia Pine who is not only a past Dental School Dean in London, but also a current Professor at the Dental Public Health Institute of Dentistry of Bart & The London Medical and Dental Institute at Queen Mary University of London. Dr. Pine is known among Public Health leaders world-wide and was personally acknowledged and awarded a Special Merit Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dental Public Health by Queen Mary herself.

 As an aspiring Dental Public Health specialist I could not dream for a better opportunity! Today, ON MY BIRTHDAY, I am asking you to support me by donating to help decrease the out of pocket expenses for my research trip to London this July. Your financial contribution will help cover the cost of airfare, travel during data collections, lodging, and food. The overall cost of all of these expenses will be about $3,700. I am asking that you consider assisting me financially in this amazing opportunity that I have to represent us in London. I was so elated when I was invited to join this research team and know that with your support, I will be the perfect ambassador of Missouri, Washington, D.C., Howard University, and the United States of America in July!

Thank you for your support!