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St. Vincent de Paul's first woman dental lead inspires others

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Posted at 6:00 PM, Apr 04, 2023
and last updated 2023-04-05 10:05:00-04

PHOENIX — There’s a new lead dentist at St. Vincent de Paul’s clinic who's paving the way for others like her.

There are plenty of things about going to the dentist that no one likes but there’s plenty to like about Dr. Betzanahy Leyva.

This year she made history at St. Vincent de Paul as the first female lead dentist.

How she got in that position, you could say was like getting a root canal – for years.

Growing up in south Phoenix, she says her family relied on food banks to eat, and ‘friendly’ isn’t necessarily how you would describe her neighborhood.

“We’d drop down on our beds because there was a drive-by and we’d be like, ‘Oh, again!” she explained.

After high school, she started volunteering at SVdP’s dental clinic.

She spent three years on the path to be a hygienist but found a more fulfilling role would be in a white coat as a dentist.

“My goal was to have something different for my life and my future and to show my sisters and siblings you can do this,” she said.

Her immigration status at the time made scholarship opportunities a struggle, but she persisted. She was able to lean on her family and her mentor Dr. Ken Snyder.

She’d work in the clinic during the day, do homework during her lunch hour, and take one class at a time. Typically, it takes a dentist four years to complete the requirements. Leyva said the pace she was completing coursework took eight years to finish.

“The patients I would see, it was my uncle, my sister. I could relate with them so much,” she said.

Some of the patients she helps today don’t have dental insurance or the means to get all the dental work they may need.

Those factors are part of the reason why she stayed with the clinic she once volunteered years ago.

Her path to becoming a lead dentist has inspired others in the very same room.

“She showed us, it’s possible,” said Beatriz Contreras.

When asked what Leyva would go back and tell her previous self, that little girl living in South Phoenix, she said, "if you feel it in your heart, just go it. And don’t give up."

And of course, a reminder to floss regularly.