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Kathy M. Lituri, RDH, MPH, Northeast Center for Research to Evaluate and Eliminate Dental Disparities, Boston University School of Dental Medcine, 715 Albany Street, 560, 3rd floor, Boston, MA 02118-2526, 617-638-5202, lituri@bu.edu, Nuria Gine-Nokes, MD, MPH Cand, Pediatrics, Brookside Community Health Center, 3297 Washington Street, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130, Paul Geltman, MD, MPH, Pediatrics, Boston University School of Medicine, 1125 Tremont Street, Roxbury, MA 02120, Susan Crowley, RN, BSN, Head Start, Action for Boston Community Development, 178 Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02111, Milton Kotelchuck, PhD, MPH, Boston University, 715 Albany Street, T5W, Boston, MA 02118-2526, and Raul Garcia, DMD, MMedSc, Northeast Center for Research to Evaluate and Eliminate Dental Disparities, Boston University, Goldman School of Dental Medcine, 715 Albany Street, 560, 3rd floor, Boston, MA 02118-2526.
Objectives: Articulate HeadStart (HS) parents’ concerns with dental care utilization, and explore their interest in HS center-based interventions to address dental problems in young children. Methods: We recruited a racially and ethnically diverse group of parents of children enrolled in ABCD HS and Early HS in Boston for structured interviews and focus groups. Thirty-seven parents from three HS and one Early HS Centers participated in four separate focus groups. Focus group participants described positive and negative personal experiences that enable them (or not) to effectively utilize dental services for their child. Role-playing enabled parents to rank a series of preconceived interventions as well as to articulate their own open-ended solutions. Complete audio recordings of sessions were obtained, transcribed, reviewed and analyzed. Results: Parents’ personal experiences and perceptions of dentistry varied greatly within and between the Centers. Top-ranked preconceived interventions included the need for information on obtaining an interpreter for dental appointments, help obtaining dental insurance for their child, help with transportation to dental offices, help determining how to pay for child’s dental visit, and “Open Houses” at HS Centers to meet local dentists. Parents’ open ended suggestions identified the need for more locally accessible dentists, friendlier, “child-oriented” dental professionals, a desire to not being labeled and “treated” as a Medicaid patient, and the need for getting dental health information from their pediatrician. Conclusion: Head Start parents offered a variety of insights that may help improve early childhood access to and utilization of dental services. Supported by NIDCR grant U54-DE14264, K24-DE00419
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Access and Services, Head Start
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.