INTRODUCTION: Children’s Oral Health (OH) is a vital part of their general health. Since many OH problems begin during early childhood, prevention of these problems can be achieved through early and routine preventive dental care. The dental community alone cannot adequately address all oral health care needs. The establishment of an interprofessional oral health primary care workforce team can help provide holistic health care services that can improve children’s OH, particularly among under-served populations. OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study was to assess the effect of Interprofessional Education (IPE) on the level of OH knowledge among pediatricians, nurses, speech-language pathologists, nutritionists, and social workers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Questionnaires assessing participants’ oral-health knowledge were collected from pediatricians, nurses, speech-language pathologists, nutritionists and social workers who are working or studying in Boston, Massachusetts. Pre-test questionnaires were used to evaluate baseline oral-health knowledge and attitude towards IPE. Post-test survey immediately after the IPE training and a follow-up survey after 6-12 months were used to evaluate immediate and long-term retention of knowledge. Pre-, post- and follow-up scores were assigned based on the participants’ responses. Univariate parametric analysis methods such as T-test and non-parametric tests such as Kruskal-Wallis and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests were used to assess retention of knowledge and attitude towards IPE. Fisher’s Exact test was used to evaluate differences in the number of high scores. Multiple linear regression models were used to adjust for potential confounders. Statistical significance was reported when p-value <0.05. RESULTS: Among the 557 participants, the immediate post-test scores showed significant improvement when compared to the baseline knowledge scores across different professions (p<0.01). The long-term follow-up scores was lower than the immediate post-test scores (statistical significance was not detected across all professions), however, still significantly higher when compared to the pre-test scores (p<0.01). Among all the participants, the attitude towards collaboration was high (100%). CONCLUSION: Our results highlight the need for collaboration between dental and non-dental healthcare workforce by incorporating IPE into existing curriculum to enhance the retention of knowledge and increase collaboration after graduation. Continuing education programs can significantly contribute towards long-term retention of knowledge. / 2022-07-29T00:00:00Z

Dental caries is the most common chronic disease in children, and prevalence rates are disproportionately higher in American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations. The Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD) recommends annual oral health screening for children in Head Start programs using the Basic Screening Survey (BSS). The 2014 study was a follow-up to a 2010 national survey of AI/AN children ages five and under that assessed oral health outcomes such as untreated decay, decay experience, urgent need for treatment, presence of sealants and decayed, missing and filled deciduous teeth (dmft) scores, and investigated the changes in Early Childhood Caries (ECC) prevalence from 2010 to 2014 in the Indian Health Service (IHS) Nashville Area. A gap analysis was completed comparing current recommended practices among dental clinics that participated in the IHS ECC Collaborative ASTDD Framework to Prevent and Control Childhood Tooth Decay (ASTDD Framework). Due to historical mistreatment of AI/AN populations in research, and out of respect for the sovereignty of the Tribal Nations that participated in the study, there limited data was made available for this study. In 2010, 579 children were screened in the Nashville Area; 1231 children participated in 2014. While there was a statistically significant, yet clinically small 9.36% reduction of untreated decay from 2010 (30.33%) to 2014 (27.49%), the ECC Collaborative did not reach their objective of a 25% reduction. There was also a significant increase in urgent need for treatment (3.17% in 2010 to 4.35% in 2014), and in presence of sealants (4.54% in 2010 to 10.01% in 2014). Gaps in best practices identified were related to need for increased risk assessments and enhancing policy development. Based on study findings and the limited access to data on Tribal and Area levels, development of culturally appropriate policies that are unique to individual Tribal needs, and focus on perinatal care, is recommended. Individual Tribal programs also need to be evaluated and surveillance needs to be continued to establish trend data. All program evaluations and research should be conducted in an ethical manner that is community-based and considerate of the needs of the Tribe.