Integrating Oral Health with Primary Care

5% of the population had a dental visit over the last year (Healthy People 2020, n. d. The goal of the 2020 initiative is to increase this percentage by ten percent (Healthy People 2020, n. d. Millions of Americans suffer from an array of oral diseases ranging from cavities to cancers (Healthy People 2020, n. On the other hand, bad oral health can be disabling leading to costly procedures and pain (Healthy People 2020, n. d. Oral health cannot just be the responsibility of dentist; primary care needs to be active in assessing and referring patients in need of routine and other dental care. This paper will discuss the primary cares role and limitations to helping reach the 2020 goal for improving oral health. Background Poor oral health remain one of the most common problems affecting the community and according to a 2013 report, more than 3.

The social effects of poor oral health can be considered as dietary, social, and psychological which result to a decreased quality of life. In terms of dietary, as oral issues arise, they result in the inability of an individual to bite, swallow, chew, and produce saliva which affects their health because they are unable to consume foods that are beneficial to their health (Healthy People 2020, 2018). Dietary consequences have a major impact on a community’s health and food selection and can be considered a major cause of most diseases in today’s community. The social effects can be considered as the ability of an individual to communicate freely with other due to isolation (Healthy People 2020, n. d. In an analysis of the population that access proper dental services it was noted that socio-economic background plays a significant role in the access of these services (Tynan, Deeth, & McKenzie, 2018).

For one, it was noted that 68. 6% of those with a stable socio-economic background have regular access to dental services. It was noted that 53. 5% of people that access standard dental services were from the disadvantaged quintile compared with the total population of the world. There are two primary objectives of this goal one which is to reduce the percentage of people who have oral infections or people that are prone to teeth loss due to gum disease (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The other objective is to increase the number of people with oral health by promoting oral health education among children in early stages of development. Supportive Evidence The Unrecognized Burden of Oral Disease Oral infections affect nearly 60-90% of world children populations mostly school children and there is a significant contribution of environmental and socio-economic factors according to epidemiological.

Dental infection is considered a significant global burden because it affects large populations even in the developed countries (Nagro, 2016). Countries that are developed have proper access to oral health services compared to developing countries and that is why there is need to implement proper campaigns that create awareness on the need for proper dental health and hygiene (Tynan, Deeth, & McKenzie, 2018). Barriers • Multiple resources identify the need and benefit for integrating however no ways / research to do so • To reduce the burden of oral disease we need to find new ways to engage patients and families, and to make oral health preventive care more accessible. Primary care teams have the skills and relationships necessary to accomplish both (Biordi Et Al. What is lacking is a clear definition of what can be done in the primary care setting, and a practical model for a close working partnership between primary care and dentistry.

To address this gap, we offer an organizing framework. (Qualis Health, 2015) • These include a lack of useful education on oral health risks and how to prevent oral disease, challenges with self-care, and limited access to dental care. Such carries are referred as early childhood carries and take several forms in preschool children. The most critical forms occur on the incisors and continue to other teeth as they erupt. Other available literatures are a compilation of the modern concepts and scientific data necessary to understand and implement practices that maintain oral health in children. One of such studies indicates that there is a significant decrease of cries in permanent teeth with the use of fluoride supplements. Among the studies reviewed, ten indicated a 30% withdrawal rate of dental carriers related with fluoride supplements (Harnagea, et al 2018).

Second Medicaid policies, are the ones that set payment rates and deicide which providers will bill for services and therefore set limits for reimbursement of particular practice settings. Though research and experience argues against the necessity of these barriers, they still exist and hinder oral health practices (Qualis Health 2015). For instance, the states practice act may include requirements that require the dentist to examine the child before a hygienist can seal their teeth. The requirements may also state that the dentist must be present when the hygienist is performing the service. Other policies even say that private dentists cannot employ hygienist to work in schools. Nevertheless, there exists a little body of literature that documents the berries to dental health or prevention programs.

The available literature dwelled on prevention and treatment approaches and little on the barriers. There is a need for future literature to emphasize more on the barriers that hinder effective dental health care maintenance. Scholarly materials should advocate the re-formulation of the existing policies to favor efficiency of dental health programs. The reimbursement rates hinder children from humble backgrounds to access dental services (Manski, Hoffmann, & Rowthorn, 2015). Most of these diseases have been ignored and their treatment requirements remain unmet (Healthy People 2020, n. d. Though, a large body of literature documents the prevalence and strategic approaches to the issue, there is not yet an effective program to implement and prove the practicability of these approaches. The LHI provides a lot of informational resources including pdfs that one can download and use as a guide to prevent and edify the society on dental health and it importance.