When a Dental Chair Opens, It Fills

HealthFinders Collaborative has officially opened its new dental clinic in Owatonna and is now seeing patients. 

The team has begun scheduling appointments and welcoming patients into the new space, and they are actively reaching out to the community to make sure families know dental care is available. The new clinic adds much-needed capacity in an area where access has become increasingly limited—especially after one of the largest dental clinics serving patients with public assistance closed last fall. 

Dental care is part of everyday care at HealthFinders Collaborative. At each of its clinics and across the community, dental services are integrated alongside medical and behavioral health care—and when capacity expands, it’s used immediately. Recently, expanded dental capacity in Faribault, and now new capacity in Owatonna, is adding more chairs, more appointments, and more access. 

HealthFinders patient receives dental services in new dental space

“We can’t seem to add dental capacity fast enough,” says Executive Director Charlie Mandile. “We recently added providers and student rotations in Faribault dramatically expanding our capacity and it was instantly filled.” He recalls asking the dental team how the waitlist was looking after the recent expansion. They smiled and shook their heads. Even as capacity grows, the waitlist does too. 

While HealthFinders is experiencing more cancellations than usual as some patients stay home out of fear of federal agents active in our community, the underlying need for dental care hasn’t changed. They expect demand to return as families begin to feel safer accessing care again. In the meantime, the Owatonna team is making sure patients know they are there—ready to provide care as soon as families feel comfortable coming in. 

Dental care is one of the hardest health services to access, especially for people without insurance, flexible work hours, or reliable transportation. Untreated dental pain doesn’t just affect smiles—it affects sleep, work, school, and overall health. At HealthFinders Collaborative, dental care isn’t an add-on. It’s a core part of a whole-person model that brings medical, dental, and behavioral health together—wherever patients receive care. 

HealthFinders’ approach to dental care has always been intentional. Dental services are offered across sites, and expansion in Faribault and Owatonna was planned carefully, with staffing, sustainability, and long-term access in mind. The goal isn’t growth for growth’s sake—it’s building capacity that lasts and ensuring care is available when and where it’s needed. 

HealthFinders is a dental home for many patients. “So many come in with one problem. We take care of that problem, get them back for a full exam, complete treatment, and then get them established for routine care to prevent future emergencies,” says Julie Bonham, HealthFinders Advanced Dental Therapist. 

Julie shared, “A patient walked in on Monday with tooth pain. I was able to get them an x-ray and scheduled for the extraction the next day. On their way out, they told the assistant that we were their ‘life saver.’” 

Moments like that are made possible by community support—by donors, volunteers, partners, and staff who believe healthcare should fit real lives. It takes $1.5 million each year to sustain HealthFinders’ mission and provide care for our community. 

The need for dental care isn’t slowing down. And now, with expanded capacity in Faribault and a new clinic open in Owatonna, HealthFinders will keep showing up—across sites and across communities—one chair, one patient, one healthier smile at a time.