Healthcare Providers' Oral Health Practices Participating in a Regional Oral Health Intervention

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Primary Care
• Oral Health Integration

Background:

• Preventive oral health services (POHS) are crucial for early childhood development.
• Integrating POHS into primary care medical visits can improve access and outcomes.
• The Rocky Mountain Network of Oral Health (RoMoNOH) project aimed to embed POHS within community health centers (CHCs).

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate changes in healthcare providers' knowledge, self-reported abilities, activities, and barriers related to POHS.
• To assess the impact of the RoMoNOH project on the delivery of preventive oral health services in primary care settings.

Main Methods:

• An observational, pre/post evaluation design was employed across 22 CHCs in four states.
• Healthcare providers were surveyed at baseline and after three years, assessing four key oral health domains.
• Statistical analyses, including chi-square, t-tests, and regression, were used to determine significant differences.

Main Results:

• Significant improvements were observed in all domains: knowledge (65% to 81%), self-reported ability (52% to 71%), and activities (32% to 57%).
• Barriers to providing POHS decreased from 27% to 21%.
• These improvements remained statistically significant after adjusting for provider age.

Conclusions:

• The RoMoNOH project successfully enhanced healthcare providers' capacity and engagement in delivering POHS.
• Integrating oral health into primary care settings is an effective strategy for improving children's oral health.
• Sustained efforts in oral health integration can lead to better healthcare practices and outcomes.