ST. LOUIS — A.T. Still University is planning to expand its St. Louis Dental Center, a move intended to increase both patient-treatment capacity and the number of dentists trained in the city.
The university’s Missouri School of Dentistry & Oral Health operates the clinic at 1500 Park Ave. in partnership with Affinia Healthcare. Greater St. Louis Inc. reported Monday that the next phase would build out the center’s third floor and add dental chairs, support space and instructional capacity.
ATSU said the expansion would allow the school to add 21 students to each entering class, ultimately producing 42 additional dentists across the two clinical training years. Detailed construction dates and final cost information were not included in the announcement. Further planning is expected in 2027.
The center gives students supervised clinical experience while providing dental services in a community-health setting. That model can expand access for patients who may face cost, insurance or provider barriers, while also strengthening the region’s oral-health workforce.
The proposal remains a planned expansion rather than a completed project. Patients should continue to use the clinic’s existing scheduling process and should not assume new appointment capacity is available yet.
The project is significant because oral health is closely connected to overall health, and many communities face shortages of dentists who accept Medicaid or provide safety-net care.
Source: Greater St. Louis Inc..
