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Special Health Care Needs

41 - Caregivers’ Dental Home Status Associated with Special Needs Transition Access

Friday, May 22, 2026
11:20 AM - 11:35 AM PST
Has Audio

    Presenting Author(s)

  • Jenna Chun, DDS

    Resident
    Cincinnati Children’s Medical Center Hospital, Cincinnati, OH
    Cincinnati Children’s Medical Center Hospital, Cincinnati, OH
    Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

    • Co-Author(s)

  • EG

    Elizabeth Gosnell, DMD

    Professor, Division of Pediatric Dentistry
    Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
    Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

  • SW

    Susan Wiley, MD

    Thomas Center for Down Syndrome

  • IR

    Ilka Riddle, PhD

    CCHMC Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics

  • IE

    Ian Elegeer, None

    University of Cincinnati

    • Research Mentor(s)

  • Sarat Thikkurissy, DDS, MS, MA (he/him/his)

    Professor
    Cincinnati Children's Hospital
    Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

    • Program Director(s)

  • Scott Schwartz, DDS, MPH

    Associate Professor
    Cincinnati Children’s Medical Center Hospital, Cincinnati, OH
    Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
    Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

Abstract:

Purpose: Successful care transition for adults with special needs (A-SHCN) is defined by; routine medical access, adequate insurance coverage, preventive healthcare visits and minimal care delay. No standardized model for A-SHCN transition in dentistry exists. Documented barriers include limited access to dentists willing to treat patients with SHCN, insurance limitations, and additional modification to care needed due to medical conditions. The purpose of this study was to identify factors associated with successful transition for A-SHCN.

Methods: This IRB approved cohort study examined successful transition through a REDCap survey asking caregivers about features that led to successful transition of their A-SHCN and accompanying process. Participants were recruited from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Behavioral Pediatric Clinic as well as community advocacy groups. Descriptive statistics were used for screening and survey questions. Continuous variables were summarized as mean and standard deviation, and categorical variables were summarized as count and percentage. Data analyses were performed using SAS version 9.4 (SAS Institute, Cary, North Carolina).

Results: Data were collected from 31 qualifying caregiver-child dyads representing 34% of the total respondents. The mean age of A-SHCN was 25.5±7.9 years. Overall, 81.5% of subjects went to the same dentist as their caregiver, with 96.8% being driven by caregivers or family members. Main features of successful transition included dentist knowledge level (80%), dentist’s comfort with patient (88%) and insurance coverage (68%).


Conclusion: This study demonstrates a positive downstream effect of A-SHCN caregivers having a dental home on their child’s access.

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