Oral health care in US nursing homes, 1995

In 1993, nursing home care was a $70 billion industry. Since oral diseases are intertwined with declining health, it is important to achieve a better understanding of oral health care in nursing homes. The purpose of this paper is to present basic information regarding the nature of dental care from the 1995 US National Nursing Home Survey. Data include general availability of dental services, a description of types of dentists' and dental hygienists' services, and numbers of full-time equivalent dentists and dental hygienists. SUDAAN software was used to adjust for the complex, multistage sample design. Of the estimated 16,700 nursing homes in the contiguous US in 1995, between 14,000 and 15,000 offered some level of dental services. About 15,600 nursing homes provided assistance for oral hygiene, while some 7720 nursing homes had dental hygienists' services available. Approximately 60% of nursing homes either did not have services of dentists at all, or had them only on call or only off-site. Availability of dental services varied by characteristics of nursing homes. Examination of the nature of dental care raises questions about whether the intent of the Federal standards for dental care in Medicare and Medicaid are really being met. As more elderly remain dentate, and as the oral comorbidities of chronic diseases become more recognized, appropriate oral health services for individuals in long-term care settings likely will increase as public health issues.