Dr. Paul Hsiao
Ensuring Underserved Children Receive Dental Care

“If you have the ability to give back to your community, you should; make the world a better place,” advised Dr. Paul Hsiao’s mother when he was in junior high school. He took her advice to heart.

That’s why he decided to become a dentist. In addition to his private practice, he travels around in a mobile dental clinic to treat elementary school children, many of whom had never been seen by a dentist before.

When he originally heard about the Champion Provider Fellowship, he was intrigued. “Being a Champion Provider Fellow has opened my eyes to the many opportunities to give back to my community. In school, we took an oath to do no harm, but I wanted to take that one step further to improve things and leave a legacy that my parents can be proud of,” says Hsiao.

But it’s the children who fuel his passion to change communities. “Working in my private practice and at the mobile and community clinics gives me perspective. I see a lot of children with dental caries (cavities), who are obese and pre-diabetic. I see them coming to school with sodas and chips for breakfast and probably lunch as well. It doesn’t make sense. In the Central Valley kids should be eating the fruits and vegetables that their parents help grow.”

Hsiao is a tireless champion to ensure that all children receive dental care. He’s co-authored an op-ed with Dr. Ken Bird, a former Fresno County health officer,

Champion Provider Fellowship (CPF) helped me to be a better leader and gave me contacts. I’ve met doctors, dentist and health care providers, and learned every county faces similar issues. Together we can solve problems without reinventing the wheel.

Dr. Paul Hsiao, Fresno, Dentist

titled, By Kindergarten, Half of Children Have Tooth Decay, for the Fresno Unified School District newsletter and was interviewed by KSEE-TV about the need to increase Denti-Cal coverage.

As the only dentist on the Fresno Oral Health Advisory Committee, he helped secure an $11 million grant for a local dental pilot project. The program was set up as a nonproft to help patients who have never seen a dentist navigate through the oral health care system to get care for their children and to assist oral health educators to connect Medi-Cal dental patients to dental services.”

Ever humble, he says, “I’m just a small-town dentist with big dreams.”

California Department of Public Health, Champions for Change and UCSF