Special Health Care Needs
Thucdan A. Nguyen, DDS
Pediatric Dental Resident
NYU Langone, Department of Dental Medicine, Brooklyn, NY
Advanced Education in Pediatric Dentistry Program, NYU Langone Hospitals, Brooklyn, NY
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Elaf Saeed, DMD MSed
NYU Langone, Department of Dental Medicine, Brooklyn, NY
Daniel J. Kane, DMD, MA
Program Director
NYU Langone Hospitals
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Maternal Anxiety Screening and Referral During Pediatric Dental Visits
Nguyen TA, Saeed E, Kaur R, Mason MK, Northridge ME
NYU Langone Health
Family Health Centers at NYU Langone, Department of Dental Medicine, Brooklyn, NY
Purpose: To assess the acceptability of screening mothers for anxiety during dental visits for their children and the feasibility of integrating maternal anxiety screening and referral when indicated to the Behavioral Health Program at Family Health Centers at NYU Langone, a Federally Qualified Health Center network in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, NY.
Methods: This feasibility and acceptability pilot study will enroll 40 mothers of pediatric dental patients who accompany their children for a new patient or periodic visit. A review of the electronic health record (EHR) of the pediatric dental patient will be conducted to determine the extent of dental disease and treatment modality. Participating mothers will complete four surveys in English, Spanish, or Chinese: 1) demographic information; 2) a validated scale to screen for general anxiety disorder (GAD-7); 3) social determinants of health adversity screening questionnaire (SDH-ASQ); and 4) maternal perceptions of anxiety screening at the dental clinic.
Results: Quantitative results will be summarized using descriptive statistics. A thematic analysis will be conducted for the qualitative data. Mothers scoring moderate to high anxiety on the GAD-7 will be referred to the Behavioral Health Program; families with identified needs on the SDH-ASQ will be referred to the Family Support Center to be connected to social services. Associations between maternal anxiety and extent of pediatric dental disease and treatment modality will be explored using Pearson’s R correlation and Chi-square tests.
Conclusion: Findings will inform the feasibility and acceptability of integration of dental, behavioral health, and social services across the health center.