Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 14, 2025
Oral Health Assessment by Lay Personnel for Older Adults
Published on: February 2, 2020
Teamwork and Oral Health in Diabetes Care
Julia A Kordsmeier1, Christopher Ty Williams2, Angelina Anthamatten2
1School of Nursing, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina kordsmja@email.unc.edu.
Background:
The integration of oral health into primary care is often limited, despite its significant connection with many diseases, including diabetes mellitus (DM).
Objective:
This project aimed to develop, implement, and evaluate an oral health education program for medical assistants (MAs) to increase oral health knowledge and enhance practice using standardized oral health screening questions for patients with DM.
Methods:
A nurse practitioner-led oral health program was implemented. Medical assistants completed a pre-test and post-test to assess oral health knowledge, a pre-survey and post-survey to assess likelihood of performing screening questions, and a post-implementation survey to assess barriers.
Results:
Analyses of pre-test and post-test results using the Wilcoxon matched pairs signed rank test (two-tailed) showed a significant increase in correct answers on the post-test (W = 0, N = 8, p ≤ 0.05), with the mean score increasing from 81% to 95%. In addition, the MAs' likelihood of asking screening questions increased and 62.5% reported no barriers to implementation after 1 week.
Conclusions:
All participants demonstrated an increase in knowledge and likelihood of using screening questions.
Implications For Nursing:
An oral health program using a team approach to equip MAs with training offers a practical method to incorporate evidence-based recommendations into primary care.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:15Diabetes: Management and Pharmacotherapy
Insulin remains the cornerstone of treatment for most patients with type 1 and many...
01:21Tooth Anatomy
The Crown, Neck, and Root
The visible part of the tooth is referred to as the crown. It's covered by enamel, the hardest substance in the human body. The crown is uniquely shaped for each type of tooth, allowing for different functions such as cutting, tearing, or...
01:25Role of Communication in the Nursing Process II: Planning and Implementation
01:21Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-I
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution...
01:18Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-II
Physical Therapist
A physical therapist (PT) aims to restore function or prevent additional impairment in a patient following an injury or disease. Massage, heat, cold, water, sonar waves, exercises, and electrical stimulation are some treatments used by PTs to treat...
01:15Teeth
In the bud stage, the tooth germ (an aggregation of cells) starts to form in the developing jawbone. During the cap stage, the tooth germ differentiates into enamel organ, dental papilla, and dental sac, which will later develop into the tooth's enamel, dentin...