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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Tracey A. Continelli, ABD, School of Public Health, SUNY at Albany, 14 Meadow Lane, Latham, NY 12110, 518 782 7551, tcontin1@nycap.rr.com

The impact of poor oral health was a fundamental theme of the 2000 publication "Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General", which presents the major economic and social issues surrounding the effects of poor oral health on society. It further emphasizes the need to extend oral health services to Americans with inadequate access to fundamental dental services. One important way to improve access is to expand the legally mandated scope of practice for dental hygienists. Levels of legally prescribed professional status differ widely from state to state, such as requirements for differing levels of supervision, continuing education, and actual services that can be provided. The tasks permitted to dental hygienists in statute and regulation affect the ability of the profession to provide preventive oral health services to patients, particularly vulnerable population or rural populations, which often encounter difficulty with access to care. This analysis investigates whether or not the scope of practice for dental hygienists exerts an impact upon oral health outcomes in children and adults within the United States.

An index summarizing the State level legal practice environment of dental hygienists was created to quantify the professional practice environment of dental hygienists and factor analyzed to confirm validity. Multi-level modeling was employed examining adults and children nested within States. Results confirm that, controlling for confounding factors, the professional scope of practice of dental hygienists exerts a positive affect upon favorable oral health outcomes. The professionalization of dental hygienists has important health implications for the U.S. population.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

• Identify a comparatively new predictor of oral health (dental hygiene professional index).
• Analyze the effects of the scope of practice of dental hygienists on oral health.
• Discuss the policy implications of these findings.

Keywords: Oral Health Outcomes, Workforce

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation