Developing leadership in dentists and schoolteachers to improve oral health inequalities

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 154-156
Author(s):  
Valerie Wordley ◽  
Raman Bedi

With oral diseases affecting people of all ages in every country of the world, new approaches are necessary to remove inequalities in oral health and increase access to oral health education. With over 1 billion children attending school, developing dental leadership skills not only in dental professionals but also in schoolteachers will help to spread oral health prevention messages effectively, implement healthy habits at a young age and impact a greater proportion of the global population to improve their oral health.

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 169-175
Author(s):  
Nike Haryani ◽  
Erma Mahmiyah ◽  
M. Ibraar Ayatullah

Primary school is a very strategic place for the prevention of dental and oral diseases. Delivering counseling material in learning oral health requires media. One of the media in dental and oral health education is through counseling using audio media. This audio media contains messages about dental health that are played at school every morning and can be exposed and heard every day so elementary school children can behave well in dental health. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of audio media outreach programs to the knowledge and level of dental and mouth hygiene of students at State Primary School 26 Kalimas Tengah, Kubu Raya Regency in 2019. This study was a quasi-experimental study with a Pre-Post observation research design. The samples of this study were 68 people which were class III, IV and V. The results showed the average rank of knowledge index before counseling with audio media was 8.928 and p was 0.020 (p<0.05) with index of dental and oral hygiene level was 0,00 and p of 0,000 (p<0.05). Meanwhile, after counseling with audio media was 9,500 and p of 0.020 (p<0.05) with a level of dental and oral hygiene of 35.00 and p of 0,000 (p<0,05). The conclusion of this study is counseling with audio media is more effective in increasing knowledge which can improve oral and dental hygiene


Author(s):  
Seon-Hui Kwak ◽  
Soo-Myoung Bae ◽  
Sun-Jung Shin ◽  
Bo-Mi Shin

We conducted a multilevel analysis to identify factors affecting adolescents’ preventive dental treatment experience in South Korea. We sampled 72,435 students who participated in the 9th Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey. The individual-level variables were divided into demographic factors, socioeconomic factors, oral health behavioral factors, and oral symptom experience factors. The regional-level variables included oral health resources, rate of students receiving oral health education at school by region, social deprivation index, and the number of private educational institutions. A higher rate of receiving oral health education in school by region was associated with increased fluoride application (1.04 times, p = 0.003). However, the number of private educational institutes per 1000 people was negatively associated with fluoride application experienced by students (0.64 times, p = 0.039). Students underwent more scaling when there were more dentists per 10,000 individuals (1.14 times, p = 0.008) and less scaling in areas with a higher social deprivation index (0.88 times, p = 0.024). To increase the access to preventive care for oral diseases among adolescents, a preventive system should be established in schools, and a primary dental care system should be established through the cooperation of the government, private dental clinics, and schools.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 182-185
Author(s):  
Peter Thomson

Internationalisation may be defined as a series of processes whereby an institute strives to increase its influence and effectiveness through global networking. In higher education, this offers opportunities to enhance communication and mobilisation between educational systems. To be globally competitive, the international university of the future must embrace digital technology, online courses and ongoing lifetime learning, especially for alumni to facilitate networks of global expertise. Oral disease neither recognises nor respects international boundaries, nor therefore should dental education, research and clinical expertise which are highly valued commodities in society. For dentistry, internationalisation offers real opportunities to influence and promote the highest standards of oral health education and clinical practice throughout the world. The international university of the future must recognise the importance of setting the highest standards for oral health across the world while maintaining regional structures and priorities.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyu Kyu Swe ◽  
Aung Kyaw Soe ◽  
Saw Htun Aung ◽  
Htin Zaw Soe

Abstract Background: Oral diseases are common and widespread around the world. The most common oral diseases are preventable and early onset is reversible. Myanmar faces many challenges in rendering oral health services because about 70 percent of the total population resides in rural areas. These relate to the availability and accessibility of oral health services. Therefore, oral health education is one key element to prevent oral diseases and to promote oral health.Methods: A quasi-experimental study was carried out at Basic Education Middle Schools in rural areas of Magway Township to study the effectiveness of oral health education on knowledge and behavior of eight to ten-year-old school children. A total of 220 school children, 110 from the intervention school, and 110 from the control school participated in this study from 2015 to 2017. Data were collected before and after intervention in the two groups by using a self-administered questionnaire. Tooth brushing method data were collected by direct observation with a checklist. Oral health education was provided at eight weekly intervals for one year. At one and a half years, third-time data collection was done on the intervention group to assess retention. Chi-square test, two samples t-test, one way repeated measure ANOVA were used for data analysis. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board at the University of Public Health,Yangon, Myanmar.Results: There were significant differences between the two groups in oral health knowledge (p<0.05) except one and also in behavior (p<0.001) after the intervention. A positive effect of the intervention was found in the intervention group. The intervention had a significant effect on the sustainability of the correct knowledge and behavior of the intervention group although the education session was stopped for six months (p<0.001). Their mean knowledge and behavioral scores at three different points got at these times were (2.45±1.12 and1.56±0.90) at baseline, (3.79±1.12 and 3.60±1.21) at one year after education, and (4.07±0.98 and 3.24±1.31) at six months after cessation of education, respectively. Conclusions: The repeated oral health education was effective to promote and sustain oral health knowledge and behavior.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ajesh George ◽  
Mariana S Sousa ◽  
Ariana C Kong ◽  
Anthony Blinkhorn ◽  
Tiffany Patterson Norrie ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Early childhood caries is a common chronic childhood disease and maternal oral health is an important risk factor. Improving the oral health knowledge and practices of pregnant women/young mothers can positively influence the oral health of children and reduce their caries risk. Such preventative strategies have been undertaken by non-dental professionals producing mixed results encompassing various interventions across the perinatal period. However, no comprehensive review of these studies has been undertaken. The aim of this review was to assess the effectiveness of maternal oral health programs undertaken during the antenatal and/or postnatal period by non-dental health professionals to reduce early childhood caries. Methods: A systematic search of five databases was undertaken using key search terms. Studies were included if they (a) involved quantitative study designs with a control; (b) were published in English; (c) reported on interventions delivered by non-dental professionals (d) delivered the intervention to expectant mothers or mothers with young infants up to 24 months; (e) measured outcomes when the child was under 5 years; (f) measured changes in oral health outcomes of children clinically and oral health behaviours of mothers or children. No restrictions were placed on the study quality and setting. Results: Nine studies met the inclusion criteria and involved interventions delivered by diverse non-dental professionals across the antenatal (n=1), postnatal (n=6) and perinatal period (n=2). Most studies were of low methodological quality (n=6). The interventions focussed on oral health education (n=8), dental referrals (n=3) and oral health assessments (n=1). Interventions conducted in either the postnatal or antenatal periods showed meaningful improvements in children’s clinical and mother’s behavioural oral health outcomes. The outcomes appear to be sustained when a suite of interventions were used along with referral reminders. There were mixed results from interventions across the perinatal period. Conclusions: Non-dental professionals can promote maternal oral health and reduce ECC in children by providing oral health education, risk assessment and referrals. Combining these interventions could provide a sustained improvement in oral health outcomes for children. However, more high-quality studies are needed to confirm whether the antenatal and/or postnatal period is best suited to deliver these interventions.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ajesh George ◽  
Mariana S Sousa ◽  
Ariana C Kong ◽  
Anthony Blinkhorn ◽  
Tiffany Patterson Norrie ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Early childhood caries is a common chronic childhood disease and maternal oral health is a risk factor. Improving the oral health behaviours of pregnant women/young mothers can positively influence the oral health of children and reduce their caries risk. Such preventative strategies have been undertaken by non-dental professionals producing mixed results encompassing various interventions across the perinatal period. However, no comprehensive review of these studies has been undertaken. The aim of this review was to assess the effectiveness of maternal oral health programs undertaken during the antenatal and/or postnatal period by non-dental health professionals to reduce early childhood caries. Methods: A systematic search of five databases was undertaken using key search terms. Studies were included if they (a) involved quantitative study designs with a control; (b) were published in English; (c) reported on interventions delivered by non-dental professionals (d) delivered the intervention to expectant mothers or mothers with young infants up to 24 months; (e) measured outcomes when the child was under 5 years; (f) measured changes in oral health outcomes of children clinically and oral health behaviours of mothers or children. No restrictions were placed on the study quality and setting. Results: Nine studies met the inclusion criteria and involved interventions delivered by diverse non-dental professionals across the antenatal (n=1), postnatal (n=6) and perinatal period (n=2). Most studies were of low methodological quality (n=6). The interventions focussed on oral health education (n=8), dental referrals (n=3) and oral health assessments (n=1). Interventions conducted in either the postnatal or antenatal periods showed meaningful improvements in children’s clinical and mother’s behavioural oral health outcomes. The outcomes appear to be sustained when a suite of interventions were used along with referral reminders. There were mixed results from interventions across the perinatal period. Conclusions: Non-dental professionals can promote maternal oral health by providing oral health education, risk assessment and referrals. Combining these interventions could provide a sustained improvement in oral health outcomes for children although current evidence is weak. More high-quality studies are needed to confirm these findings and determine whether the antenatal and/or postnatal period is best suited to deliver these interventions.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stacey Bracksley-O'Grady ◽  
Karen Anderson ◽  
Mohd Masood

Abstract Oral diseases, place a significant burden on individual and population health. These diseases are largely preventable; health promotion initiatives have been shown to decrease the disease rates. However, there is limited implementation of health promotion in dentistry, this could be due to a number of factors; the ethos and philosophy of dentistry is focused on a curative, individualised approach to oral diseases, confusion around health promotion as a concept. Oral health academics are well placed to implement health promotion, training of these professionals needs to include prevention, as training influences dental practice. However, there is a little understanding about how oral health academics (dental professionals who educate dental and oral health students) view health promotion. The aim of this study is to understand how oral health academics conceptualise health promotion and perceive the barriers and possible opportunities for health promotion implementation in dental practice. Methods: Nominal group technique (NGT), a highly structured face-to-face meeting, was conducted with 24 oral health academics to explore how they conceptualize health promotion and the barriers and opportunities for health promotion in practice. An additional 4 questions were emailed to oral health educators after the NGT meeting to gather additional data, 6 oral health academics were involved. The data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Four board themes were identified: “health education”; “structure of dental practice”; “work in progress”; “collaboration”. The oral health academics in this study discussed health promotion in a holistic way, however, health education and behaviour change were mentioned more than other aspects of health promotion. The structure of dental practice specifically the curative approach that underpins dentistry and the lack of funding, and value placed on health promotion could act as a barrier to health promotion being implemented in practice. There has been a shift towards prevention in dentistry, however the participants acknowledge there needs to be a change in the curative culture of the profession. Collaboration with other health professionals and using a common risk factor approach were the identified opportunities for health promotion practice. Conclusions: Oral health academics have a holistic understanding of health promotion, but still focus more on behavioural approaches which is common within dentistry. For a change to occur in health promotion practice a change in the structure, curative approach and funding model of dentistry is required. Collaboration with other health professionals is an opportunity to be capitalised on. Training of future dental professionals is the perfect place to start to implement the changes and opportunities for health promotion presented in this paper.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susy Nazaré Silva Ribeiro Amantini ◽  
Alexandre Alberto Pascotto Montilha ◽  
Bianca Caseiro Antonelli ◽  
Kim Tanabe Moura Leite ◽  
Daniela Rios ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND New technologies create possible new ways of action, interaction, and learning which is extremely relevant in the field of oral health education. There is a lack of protocol in using an immersive interactive ludic-educational interface to motivate oral hygiene practice in children by means of augmented reality. OBJECTIVE This study aims to present a protocol on the development of a serious game to motivate oral hygiene practice in children. METHODS A serious game will be designed by augmented reality techniques to improve toothbrushing effectiveness of children aged 6 to 10 years. The functional structure of this interface is activated by means of movements recognized by Kinect (Microsoft Corp). The toothbrushing technique will be available in the game, enabling the children to execute the movement in the virtual environment. By identifying errors, this game will be tailored to improve the oral health of children by correcting the technique and teaching the user the adequate toothbrushing method. A template analysis will be performed to identify barriers and facilitators in each scenario. RESULTS After the implementation of the virtual interactive and immersive panels, enrollment will begin and evaluations will be made by means of questionnaires distributed to participants who interact with the game. Thus, an analysis of the product efficacy will be conducted. The expected outcome will be to obtain a digital instrument to motivate oral hygiene practice and enhance health awareness in children. CONCLUSIONS The serious game will support the prevention of oral diseases by sharing scientific research in the school environment and community. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT PRR1-10.2196/10987


2021 ◽  
pp. 26-32
Author(s):  
Hala Zakaria ◽  
Hina Nasreen ◽  
Ehab Basssam

Objectives: Good oral heath not only promotes an individual to look and feel good, it also helps in preserving oral functions. The study was carried out to assess oral health knowledge and practices, attitudes as well as their oral hygiene habits among university students in the UAE. Method: A structured and revised questionnaire was distributed to 300 university students that were randomly sampled from the selected universities of the UAE. The questionnaires were answered anonymously by the students and paper consisted of questions to study and assess the prevalence of oral diseases amongst these students. The answers were then subjected to statistical analysis to determine if there is a significant correlation between oral health knowledge and attitude. Results: Data showed a positive correlation with a Pearson coefficient value of 0.4 given at a positive gradient when plotted as a linear graph. The students had good knowledge on the basic oral health measures but still students had poor oral health practices they brush their teeth once daily and brushed for less than the optimal time of two minutes. Lack of time and cost were reported to be the most common causes that prevented visiting the dental clinic. While some students reported no importance to visit the dentist if there is any pain as the second most common reason. Conclusion: Students had good knowledge on the basic oral health measures but efforts towards spreading proper dental education is very important to minimize and prevent the escalation of oral diseases that may develop due to lack of correct dental knowledge. Oral health education programs should be conducted with reinforcement to close the gap between knowledge and practice.


2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladan Đorđević ◽  
Slavica Đukić Dejanović ◽  
Ljiljana Janković ◽  
Ljubomir Todorović

SummaryPatients with schizophrenia, especially during period of their hospitalization, are likely to constitute a high-risk group of individuals with respect to prevalence of oral diseases. Several factors are mentioned in the manuscript that may contribute to the finding of increased prevalence of oral diseases in patients with schizophrenia. Unfortunately, some of these can be attributed to dental profession; these patients are sometimes deprived of dental service as they cannot afford the treatment due to its cost and they are even neglected sometimes by dental professionals. The idea of providing oral health care in the environment of specialized health care institutions, such as psychiatric hospitals, during periods of hospitalization, is especially emphasized.


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