Children's Oral Health in the Health Home
This issue of TrendNotes discusses the importance of a client-centered health home that includes overall health, oral health, and mental health care to improving children's health. It explores the integration of oral health care with overall health care and discusses federal opportunities, particularly those under the Affordable Care Act, for promoting a health home for children and their families. [Funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau]
VanLandeghem K. 2011. Washington, DC: National Maternal and Child Oral Health Policy Center. 13 pp. Available online.
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From the Tooth's Point of View: Communicating Serious Health Messages with Wit and Whimsy
In this podcast, Jeanette Flannery Courtad, dentist, artist, and author, talks with Helen Osborne, host of the Health Literacy Out Loud podcast series, about health literacy and oral hygiene. Topics include why preventive health messages are often difficult to communicate; ways to draw attention to messages with empathy, wit, and whimsy; and strategies for working with children, young adults, and parents.
Health Literacy Consulting. 2011. Natick, MA: Health Literacy Consulting. Available online.
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Smiles for Ohio: Fluoride Varnish–Training for Primary Medical Care Providers Serving Children Enrolled in Medicaid
This series of four modules is designed to increase knowledge among Medicaid/Healthcheck primary care medical professionals and other health professionals about reducing the incidence of dental caries in infants and children under age 3 and to contribute to the establishment of a dental home. Topics include the role of primary care medical professionals; the dental caries process; caries risk assessment; and anticipatory guidance, fluoride varnish, and referral.
Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Oral Health Services. 2011. Columbus, OH: Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Oral Health Services. Available online.
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The State of Children's Dental Health: Making Coverage Matter
This report and accompanying fact sheets identify policies that states can adopt to improve children's oral health and uses these benchmarks to grade states' ability to serve children who are insured or soon to be insured. Core policy areas include fluoridation, Medicaid improvements, innovative work force models, and data collection and reporting. The report presents key findings as well as information on the consequences of poor access and state budget challenges and dental investments. The fact sheets provide grades and benchmarks for each state, reflecting changes that have occurred since an initial 2010 assessment. A video featuring report findings is also available.
Pew Center on the States. 2011. Washington, DC: Pew Center on the States. 25 pp. Available online.
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Dentist-Patient Communication Techniques Used in the United States: The Results of a National Survey
This article present national estimates of the use of dentist-client communication techniques. The authors found that the number of communication techniques dentists used varied substantially. Dentists used an average of only 3.1 of 7 basic techniques during a typical work week. Less than one-fourth of dentists routinely used teach-back methods in which clients are asked to repeat information or instructions back to the dentist to check for understanding—methods that health-literacy experts recommend for universal use.
Rozier RG, Horowitz AM, Podschun G. 2011. Journal of the American Dental Association 142(5):518-530. Abstract available online.
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Disparities in Child Access to Emergency Care for Acute Oral Injury
This article examines dentists' willingness to provide treatment for acute oral injury to children enrolled in public vs. private insurance. Research assistants posing as mothers of a boy seeking an urgent dental appointment made calls to dental practices. The only difference in the calls was the child's insurance coverage (Medicaid/CHIP vs. private Blue Cross dental coverage). Overall, callers were told their insurance type was not accepted by the dental practice in 63.5 percent of Medicaid/CHIP calls and 4.7 percent of Blue Cross calls. Compared with children with Blue Cross, children with Medicaid/CHIP were 18 times more likely to be denied an appointment by a dental practice enrolled in Medicaid/CHIP.
Bisgaier J, Cutts DB, Edelstein BL, Rhodes KV. 2011. Pediatrics [Epub ahead of print]. Abstract available online.
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Early Childhood Caries in Indigenous Communities
This statement focuses on the role of primary care health professionals in addressing oral disease and barriers to care among children in indigenous communities in Canada (First Nations, Inuit, and Metis) and the United States (American Indian, Alaska Natives). Topics include the severity of oral disease in children in indigenous communities, risk factors for early childhood caries, prevention strategies, and access to early oral health care. The statement includes recommendations for clinical care, community-based initiatives, work force, advocacy, and research.
American Academy of Pediatrics, Committee on Native American Child Health, Canadian Paediatric Society, First Nations, Inuit and Metis Committee. 2011. Pediatrics 127(6):1190-1198. Available online.
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Oral Health Activities of Early Head Start Teachers Directed Toward Children and Parents
This article documents the frequency of teachers' oral health activities in Early Head Start programs in North Carolina and how they vary according to teacher and program characteristics. Nearly three-quarters of teachers reported that they never, rarely, or only occasionally brush children's teeth, and less than 50 percent never or rarely use toothpaste. Only 15 to 35 percent of teachers reported routinely engaging in oral-health-related activities with parents. There was a significant relationship between teachers' oral health practices and their expressed oral health values, self-efficacy, oral health training, barriers to child oral health activities, and directors' and health coordinators' knowledge about the time of a child's first dental visit.
Kranz AM, Rozier RG, Zeldin LP, Preisser JS. 2011. Journal of Public Health Dentistry 161-169. Abstract available online.
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Teledentistry-Assisted, Affiliated Practice for Dental Hygienists: An Innovative Oral Health Workforce Model
This article provides information about Arizona's affiliated practice dental hygiene model, which uses teledentistry technologies to acquire and transmit diagnostic data to a distant dentist for triage, diagnosis, and client referral. Topics include student training and clinical experience; field trials; the Kiddie Clinic demonstration project; and applications of teledentistry-assisted affiliated practice dental hygiene.
Summerfelt FF. 2011. Journal of Dental Education 75(6):733-742. Abstract available online.
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