Pediatric Dentist Cook Children's Neighborhood Health Center
Disclosure(s):
Tonya K. Fuqua, DDS: No financial relationships to disclose
Sheela J. Patel, DDS: No financial relationships to disclose
The common gap with many dental programs is lack of follow-up and follow through with families, both of which are necessary to reducing barriers and ensuring dental treatment plans are completed. This session will highlight how integrating medical-dental services, with the added support of a Community Health Worker (CHW) can close that gap by: Maximizing the addition of a CHW to support treatment completion; Identify & address barriers to oral care; and demonstrating improved health outcomes.
Learning Objectives:
(1) Describe the building of a strong infrastructure to ensure long-term sustainability with a collaborative multi-disciplinary approach to connect children to a medical/dental home.
Demonstrate how medical-dental integration can reduce the prevalence of dental caries among children.
(3) Identify and address barriers to oral health care by addressing social service needs utilizing Community Health Workers (CHWs) to coordinate care.
