PC1171: Changing Oral Health Curriculum to Change Clinical Practice: The 100 Million Mouth Campaign at the Center for the Integration of Primary Care and Oral Health

Background: The 100 Million Mouths Project is an initiative started in 2020 with a goal of creating fifty oral health champions over the next decade, one in each state. Each champion was provided with resources to effectively work with health professional schools in their state to integrate oral health into curricula to bridge gaps in oral health education to promote better oral health care in practice.

Methods: Champions were chosen from states with greatest needs to improve oral health. Leading the champions were experts in the field of public health, medicine and dentistry. Training consisted of two 4 hour sessions followed by monthly meetings focusing on collaboration with departments of public health, state coalitions, and health professions training programs. The champions were expected to contact health profession programs and use the resources provided to begin developing an increased focus on oral health and discussion of medical dental integration importance in the curriculum of their programs.

Results: In 2020-2021 sessions were held with five state champions with AAP members from 3 states (Delaware, Hawaii and Iowa). Year 1 activities include the Delaware champion partnering with 1 Med-Peds, 1 FM residency, 1 FNP program and collaboration with State Oral Health Department to deliver educational sessions and fluoride varnish training to residency programs. Smiles for Life Curriculum was integrated into a FNP program. The Hawaii Champion provided resources to 6 nursing programs, one medical school, integrated Smiles for Life Curriculum in one DNP curriculum and received funding to create an oral health toolkit for providers. The Iowa Champion provided oral health resources to 5 PCP residencies, 1 PA program, and DO program, providing fluoride varnish training for 90 students and residents leading to standardized clinical practice of applying fluoride varnish to children at two family medicine programs. Smiles for Life modules were integrated into the curriculum in these programs.

Conclusion: The 100MMC campaign has shown to be impactful in providing education, increasing medical dental integration into health science curriculum and building oral health capacity within each of the states served by champions. Valuing oral health in primary care is necessary in order to improve these outcomes that exist. A first step to improve clinical competency of PCPs is to target those being educated in medicine and nursing. Future direction for these champions includes developing self sustaining curriculums that will be conducted by “local” champions within each program. We will continue to contact and develop relationships with more programs within our states. An emphasis will be placed on equitable care, highlighting struggles of vulnerable populations and how increased awareness during health sciences training can create better outcomes. There will be ongoing recruitment for state champions at the CIPCOH level to extend the program to all 50 states.