Director, Child Health Evaluation Cook Children's Health Care System
Participants should be aware of the following financial/non-financial relationships: . Becki Hale, EdD, MA, RDH: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.
Abstract: Dental caries, obesity, and asthma episodes often co-occur among children in the United States and share many risk factors, yet these conditions are preventable. There is a need to address dental caries, obesity, and asthma more collaboratively through prevention efforts; however, research lacks coordinated community-based prevention strategies for these three health conditions.
Traditionally, community-based approaches to prevent dental caries, obesity, and asthma during childhood are more siloed. The objective of this multiple case study was to identify barriers and successful commonalities among community-based prevention strategies aligning with the Spectrum of Prevention theoretical framework to collaboratively address dental caries, obesity, and asthma episodes during childhood.
This study included a multi-faceted examination involving parents, community health program staff, medical and dental care providers, and community stakeholders using an overarching research question and four primary research questions—one primary question for each case. Methods included interviews, observations, and document review. After completing a within-case framework analysis and a cross-case thematic analysis, the results of this study discovered an overlap among strategies concerning communication methods with families and the community, meeting basic needs, trust and relationship building, and provider and organizational education. Conclusions from this study provide several implications to coordinate community-based prevention strategies contending to childhood dental caries, obesity, and asthma. In concurrence with the implications for program staff, medical and dental providers, and community stakeholders, this presentation will provide recommendations to support collaborative strategies among these groups for addressing dental caries, obesity, and asthma with children and families.
