Oral Health Program Coordinator Arkansas Department of Health
Participants should be aware of the following financial/non-financial relationships: . Vonda Nutt, RDH: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.
Untreated dental decay and periodontal diseases have been linked to diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. Poor oral health during pregnancy is associated with premature births and low birth-weight babies (Source: CDC). This presents an opportunity to improve overall public health by bridging the gap between dental and medical care. Evidence suggests that the proportion of individuals receiving oral health services by a non-dental provider is very low in Arkansas, compared to the U.S. (Source: MSDA).
To spur change, the 2011 Arkansas ACT 90 authorized physicians and nurses to apply Dental Fluoride Varnish (DFV) to a child’s teeth after appropriate training. Following the Act, the Office of Oral Health (OOH) launched the Paint-A-Smile campaign in collaboration with primary medical care providers and Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) clinics (92). The campaign goals were to educate medical and public health personnel on the importance of children’s oral health, provide training on oral health risk assessment and dental fluoride varnish (DFV) application, and initiate a referral to a dental home as needed.
The OOH partnered with ADH Regional Directors and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences to promote the Paint-A-Smile campaign. As a result, since the inception of the Paint-A-Smile Campaign, there was a significant increase in the number of DFV certification trainings and trainees, participating ADH clinics, and the number of DFV applications per month.
This roundtable session will discuss the campaign results in detail, successes and challenges of medical-dental integration process, partnerships and leadership buy-in, and the lessons learned.
