330363
Staff Satisfaction with Oral Health Related Trainings and Integration of Oral Health Services in the Head Start Classroom
Maureen Harrington, MPH,
Pacific Center for Special Care, University of the Pacific School of Dentistry, San Francisco, CA
Children from low income families bear a disproportionate burden of dental disease. One of the reasons is lack of access to care. A way to improve access to care is by offering services where the children spend most of their time. One such program is the Head Start preschool. Success of a program outside the dental office lies with seamlessly integrating dental care delivery in the classrooms. This requires staff trainings. The purpose of this report is to highlight teachers/ staff mentoring to collaborate and successfully integrate oral health care delivery in preschool classroom and to report on the findings of staff survey on how well the program is integrating in the classrooms. Staff trainings comprised of didactics on importance of oral health in early life, ways to acess services, enrollment in the Virtual Dental Program, and case management of the children who have extensive needs. Survey was used to study staff awareness of VDH, perspective on staff training, program outcomes and attitude regarding VDH team. Survey results indicated staff was generally very well informed about VDH. 46% of staff demonstrated positive attitude towards dental health and its incorporation into the classroom. 37 % responded dental training/tools provided assisted to integrated oral health delivery in classroom. Results indicate that oral health care can be effectively delivered in a classroom environment by providing tools to teachers which will enhance comfort and acceptance of the program. Also identified was a need for continuous retraining to meet the staff’s needs.
Learning Areas:
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Learning Objectives:
Identify means to deliver dental care in a non-traditional setting.
Evaluate success of oral health program incorporated in classroom.
Keyword(s): Oral Health, Child Health Promotion
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am working as a dental provider in a community funded pilot project of integrating oral health in classroom. Finding a solution for lack of dental care among low income families has been my priority focus.
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.
