A Review of the South African National Oral Health Policy

Advocacy for oral health promotion, prevention and treatment of oral diseases is founded on a comprehensive oral health policy that is integrated into the South African National Health Policy. The policy is intended to be a roadmap in the pursuit of achieving optimum oral health for the South African population. To review the National Oral Health Policy of SA (NOHPSA) in terms of context, strengths, weaknesses, implementation and monitoring regarding the oral health status of the SouthAfrican population.Results Promotive and preventive services lack detail on activities to achieve goals. The objectives, although very well defined, cannot be measured and there is no way of knowing whether they have been achieved. It was evident that the policy needs to be reviewed and updated in accordance to recent survey data, population growth and the profile (number and types) of health service providers. The prospect of updating the policy relies on the availability of current epidemiological surveys, which are not available, the most recent survey was conducted in 2002. The policy lacks a monitoring and evaluation plan. This is critical not only for the assessment of actualisation of aims and objectives, but for the sustainability of intended interventions.

Oral Health & Dentistry in Bhutan: call for actions to address a public health urgency

Introduction: Bhutan’s healthcare approach in achieving the sustainable development goal 3 (SDG 3) has been largely through primary healthcare as enshrined in the universal health coverage (UHC). Bhutan has forged a unique primary healthcare model in which oral health is integrated in its primary care initiatives. The Oral Health program under the Department of public health was established in 1999 with clear line objectives. The program has achieved commendable successes over the years. However, with changing needs, enhancing and mainstreaming of oral health and dentistry in the country must be accorded a top priority. This is particularly important as the Oral Health Policy and service standards were drafted fourteen years ago in 2007. The 2021 World Health Orgnization (WHO) agreement “to provide basic oral health services to all”, to which Bhutan is signatory, needs to be strictly implemented. Therefore, oral health dialogue was conducted to deliberate on the oral health systems in the country with experts from the field who were from within and outside Bhutan. This oral health policy dialogue generated important themes such as strategic and competent workforce, capacity development, need to transform oral health services in more people centric ways and mainstreaming oral health in other health policies.

Does the implementation of a national oral health policy reduce inequalities in oral health services utilization? The Brazilian experience

Background This study aimed to assess the trend in income-related inequalities in oral health services utilization by the Brazilian population from 1998 to 2013. This period represents a timeline that includes different stages of implementation of the National Oral Health Policy. Methods The design was based on repeated cross-sectional surveys using secondary data from household-based studies carried out in Brazil in 1998, 2003, 2008, and 2013. The dependent variable was “having access to a dentist appointment at least once in a lifetime (yes/no).” Monthly household per capita income, based on Brazil’s minimum wage, was included as the main independent variable. To measure the inequalities in oral health access related to economic position, the following complex indexes based on regression were used: (a) the slope index of inequality (SII) and (b) the relative index of inequality (RII). Results There was a reduction in the percentage of individuals who never had a dentist appointment for all age groups and income classifications. In general, there was a reduction trend in absolute inequality for all age groups (p < 0.001). The relative inequality and reduction trend were different between the age groups studied. Conclusions The National Oral Health Policy was very important for expanding free of charge, public access to dental appointment. However, despite policy implementation, there continues to be high levels of inequality in access to dental consultation. Assessing which strategies are necessary to overcome this challenge is discussed.

Living, collective and political organisms for construction of the attributes of the National Oral Health Policy

ABSTRACT The last few decades have witnessed a growth in the value of dentists as health professionals as they act as protagonists in the construction of public health policies. This change comes from powerful and representative dentists in the Unified Health System (acronym in Portuguese is SUS). This short theoretical essay aims to bring the reader closer to the attributes necessary for the building of a social policy and draws a parallel with the National Oral Health Policy (acronym in Portuguese is PNSB). Issues such as context-oriented health policy and the National Oral Health Policy associated with the attributes of a social policy are presented in a narrative and reflective manner. In this process, the exercise of citizenship is demonstrated, emphasizing the importance of the collective role and policy of dentist surgeons in the stages of health policies in Brazil

Decoding India’s national oral health program-an appraisal of the barriers to quality dental care

Oral health is a poorly assessed and treated aspect of the health among Indians. The government continues to poorly fund oral health programs even though evidence of mounting incidence of poor oral health among Indians lingers on. Regardless of the profoundly anticipated national oral health program, oral health burden stays gazing at the nation. It could be a direct result of a fragmented policy with varying priorities regarding the possible solutions to oral health problems. Its implementation faces numerous hindrances which should be defeated for successful utilization. Thus, it is fundamental for the government of India, the policymakers, the stakeholders, and dental bodies to conquer every single barrier and define a compelling national oral health policy backed by current scientific evidence. It would guarantee oral health care to all particularly the populace from the oppressed section of the society. This paper is an endeavour to unite all the components identified with the national oral health program. Additionally, give suggestions for its viable usage.

The Dental Specialties Center as a point of attention in the Oral Health Care Network in a region of Paraná

The National Oral Health Policy (NOHP) arose as an alternativefor the improvement of oral healthcare to all Brazilians. On theperspective of specialized care, Dental Specialties Centers(DSC) were implemented. Aim: The aim of this manuscriptwas the analysis the role of the DSC for the organization of theOral Health Care Network (OHCN) in the 20th Regional HealthSection (RHS) of Paraná. Methods: It is a qualitative study,which analyzed the role performed by the regional DSC TypeIII, a reference for 18 municipalities. The data were collectedthrough interviews carried out in the period between Marchand April 2019. Fourteen professional dentist-surgeons, ninefrom Basic Health Units (BHU) and five from the DSC wereinterviewed. For data analysis, speech analysis was used.Results: An active role of the regional DSC was identified inthis healthcare region, as it acts as a fundamental point in thestrengthening of the network, in the process of regionalizationand in the integrality of care. Conclusions: However, theimportance of broadening the access to specialized careneeds to be highlighted, to guarantee the continuity of carestarted at the BHU.

Produtividade dos laboratórios de prótese dentária do SUS no estado da Bahia

INTRODUCTION: The difficulty in accessing oral health services and the practice of dental mutilation has led to a high number of individuals affected by edentulism. In order to reverse this situation, the National Oral Health Policy was implemented and with it the Dental Prosthesis Laboratories. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the productivity of the dental prothesis of these laboratories in the state of Bahia, in 2016. METHODOLOGY: This was a quantitative-descriptive study in which data were collected from Outpatient Information System of the Unified Health System regarding dental prosthesis productivity. The information of physical structure, human resources of the laboratories and their distribution by health regions were collected in the site of the National Registry of Health and other information about the municipality in the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. The absolute and relative frequency of the variables and the comparison of productivity with the structural characteristics of the laboratories and health regions of Bahia were presented. RESULTS: We analyzed 51 municipalities that offer dental prosthesis services in SUS, of these 32 have CEO. A total of 46,870 prostheses produced of the type dentures, partial removable, fixed and on implant were observed, with the cities with CEO producing 66.49% and the 19 cities without CEO produced 33.51%. The type of prosthesis most performed was the total (58.73%) followed by the removable partial prosthesis (40.07%). The South region presented the highest productivity of dental prostheses (24.26%) while the region Center North produced the lowest amount (2.28%). CONCLUSION: Although there is a considerable amount of prostheses produced, only 12.2% of the municipalities in Bahia have a dental prosthesis laboratory, even demonstrating a considerable amount of productivity.