Expanding Preventive Oral Health Services in School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs): Quality Improvement Collaborative to Enhance Capacity of Primary Care Providers

In partnership with Kaiser Permanente, NASBHC launched a 10 month School-Based Health Center (SBHC) training and technical assistance project with 20 grantee sites in 2011. The aim of the initiative was to enhance the capacity of school-based primary care clinicians to deliver oral health preventive services. This includes conducting assessments for children and adolescents who may be at risk of dental diseases, providing anticipatory guidance on nutrition, applying fluoride varnish on patients' teeth to help prevent caries (tooth decay), and referring students to local dental providers for diagnostic and treatment services as necessary. Following the initial on-site training at the NASBHC annual convention, the clinics began implementing these preventive services in their SBHC practices, with many sites indicating an impact among the students they serve. This session will focus on initial outcomes of the project period, including: data on assessments, exams, anticipatory guidance, fluoride varnish application, and dental care referrals conducted by the clinics; partnerships with local dental providers and networks to ensure follow-up care; and integration of oral health prevention in overall school health services.