141st APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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Recorded Annual Meeting Presentations (RAMP) are now available for purchase.
Only $90 for presenters, $140 for registered attendees and $200 for non-attendees.

Online Program

278907
Effective caries prevention strategies: Bringing Ecuador to Kentucky, USA


Tuesday, November 5, 2013 : 11:30 a.m. - 11:50 a.m.

Anthony Lockard, MSW, CSW, Clark County Health Department, Winchester, KY
Rankin Skinner, DMD, Priavate Practice, Win, KY
     
In 2007, Kentucky claimed the highest rate of early childhood caries in the USA. A local dentist, on hearing this embarrassing statistic was moved to action because, under the charitable auspices of Partners for the Americas, he had created an extensive school-based community oral health program, recruiting novel volunteers, in Ecuador (urban, remote rural, rainforest), providing oral hygiene materials, instruction, and fluoride varnish applications. This decade-long Ecuador program continues to show positive impact.

Replicating the Ecuador program in Clark County, support was received from Clark County Community Foundation and Clark County Health Department creating a five-year Clark County Dental Health Initiative (CCDHI). By 2008, fully-organized professional volunteers began an educational program coupled with fluoride varnish applications for all public and private school children – plus pre-school facilities. Four-year data indicated that the decay rate for children in the 6th grade (final year of primary school) has fallen from 50.24% (dmfs) to 11.8% (dmfs). This presentation outlines crucial elements for implementing a successful volunteer, school-based program and provides final results of the five-year CCDHI.

The fluoride varnish selected for the Ecuador and the Kentucky programs was one with amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) for its added remineralization potential.

Learning Areas:

Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Administration, management, leadership
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Provision of health care to the public

Learning Objectives:
Identify novel sources of professional volunteers in your community who would support an active prevention program. Demonstrate the ability to name all the stakeholders in a school-based oral health program.

Keyword(s): Community Preventive Services, Collaboration

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Since 2002 with the support of Partners of the Americas, a federally funded grassroots exchange program, I have served as project director on the Ecuador Dental Health Initiative, a preventive dental program working under the auspices of the Ecuadorean Minister of Health. As dental advisor and representative of the Winchester/Clark County Dental Society, I directed the Clark County Dental Health Initiative (CCDHI) from 2007 - 2013. I’m a licensed general dentist specializing in family dentistry.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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