Barriers to dental care in a rural community.

Purpose: A nurse-led rural practice, Archer Family Health Care, established a partnership with the University of Florida College of Dentistry to improve access to dental care for underserved rural populations. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the impact of this partnership on dental care access and identify perceived barriers patients' experience in this rural community.

Methods: A qualitative design was used to evaluate if this partnership improved access to dental care and identify care barriers existing in this population.