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Resources by Topic: Oral health

Disparities in Preventive Dental Care Among Children in Georgia
Examines access to preventive dental care between low-income children eligible for public dental insurance compared to children with private dental insurance and/or a high family income in Georgia. Assesses the effects of policies toward increasing access to dental care for low-income children. Includes a map illustrating the percent of children with financial access to preventive dental care for each county.
Author(s): Shanshan Cao, Monica Gentili, Paul M. Griffin, Susan O. Griffin, Nicoleta Serban
Citation: Preventing Chronic Disease, 14
Date: 10/2017
Type: Document
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Rural Veterans' Dental Utilization, BRFSS, 2014
Highlight study on the dental utilization rates for rural veterans. Explores whether the rural veterans are more likely to experience negative oral health outcomes, such as missing teeth. Breaks down data by age, race, educational attainment, and rural versus urban location, among other factors.
Author(s): R. Constance Wiener, Chan Shen, Usha Sambamoorthi, Patricia A. Findley
Citation: Journal of Public Health Dentistry, 77(4), 383-392
Date: 09/2017
Type: Document
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Innovations in Rural Health System Development: Federally Qualified Health Center Initiatives
Reports on Maine's Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs). Discusses strategies for workforce recruitment and retention, serving high-need patient populations, addressing critical community needs, and providing services that address the social determinants of health. Provides various examples of programs from across the state.
Author(s): Sara Kahn-Troster, Amanda Burgess, Andrew Coburn
Date: 09/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Catherine Cutler Institute, Maine Health Access Foundation
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Trends in the Development of the Dental Service Organization Model: Implications for the Oral Health Workforce and Access to Services
Results of a 2017 survey of dental service organizations, which often build new practices in underserved and rural areas, and case studies of 6 dental support organizations providing general or specialty dentistry in North Carolina, Georgia, Texas, Florida, and Massachusetts.
Author(s): Margaret Langelier, Shen Wang, Simona Surdu, Elizabeth Mertz, Cynthia Wides
Date: 08/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Center for Health Workforce Studies, Oral Health Workforce Research Center
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An Assessment of Mobile and Portable Dentistry Programs to Improve Population Oral Health
Describes configurations of portable and mobile dental programs including models and applications, discusses targeted populations, details variations in regulations by state, and examines outcomes of preventive interventions in underserved areas. Includes case studies of 7 programs initiated to improve access in underserved populations or in rural areas.
Additional links: Policy Brief
Author(s): Margaret Langelier, Jean Moore, Rachel Carter, et al.
Date: 08/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Oral Health Workforce Research Center
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Dental Utilization for Communities Served by Dental Therapists in Alaska's Yukon Kuskokwim Delta: Findings from an Observational Quantitative Study
Presents results from a program evaluation designed to assess the impact of dental therapists on dental utilization and oral health outcomes in the Yukon Kuskokwim (YK) Delta of Alaska. Examines utilization and outcomes based on total dental therapist treatment days, presents results for both child and adult populations, and focuses on three primary measures: preventive dental care use, extraction of teeth, and dental care under general anesthesia.
Author(s): Donald L. Chi, Dane Lenaker, Lloyd Mancl, et al.
Date: 08/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Washington
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Health Care Access and Utilization Among Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Persons in the United States, 2014
Provides detailed statistics on healthcare access and utilization for the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) population as a whole, as well as multiple- and single-race NHPI populations, with comparisons to other groups and to the U.S. population. Topics addressed include health insurance coverage, usual place of care, emergency department visits, delayed care due to cost, dentist visits, influenza and pneumococcal vaccination, and HIV screening.
Author(s): Carla E. Zelaya, Adena M. Galinsky, Catherine Simile, Patricia M. Barnes
Citation: Vital and Health Statistics, 3(41)
Date: 08/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Center for Health Statistics
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Chartbook: Trends in Rural Children's Oral Health and Access to Care
Findings brief discussing oral health disparities between urban and rural children in 2003, 2007, and 2011-2012. Features statistics including poverty status, health insurance coverage, percentage of children having a recent preventive dental visit, and condition of teeth, with breakdowns by race or ethnicity and urban, large rural, or small rural status.
Author(s): Amy B. Martin, Janice C. Probst, Karen M. Jones
Date: 08/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Improving Rural Oral Health: Six States' Response to the United States Department of Health and Human Services Oral Health Strategic Framework
Findings brief describing how Colorado, Iowa, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina have responded to the Department of Health and Human Services' 2014-2017 goals for advancing oral health in America, with emphasis on programs available to children. Features statistics including number of dental insurance companies, number of public health dental clinics or Federally Qualified Health Centers providing oral health services, and number of full-time and part-time dentists and dental hygienists at these facilities in each of the six states.
Author(s): Amy B. Martin, Janice C. Probst, Karen M. Jones
Date: 08/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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A Workforce Strategy for Reducing Oral Health Disparities: Dental Therapists
Presents a history of dental therapy as a workforce strategy, from development to implementation. Examines the states and tribal nations that have implemented dental therapists as a means to improve oral healthcare access.
Author(s): Jane Koppelman, Rebecca Singer-Cohen
Citation: American Journal of Public Health, 107(Suppl 1), S13-S17
Date: 06/2017
Type: Document
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