These barriers contribute to a lack of access to oral health care in low income communities throughout the state.īeyond the public health consequences of poor oral health are outcomes that affect the financial, educational, and workforce aspects of families and communities. The presence of dental caries in young children age 2-5 years and children in 3rd gradeĮarly detection of oral and pharyngeal cancersįrequently cited barriers to improving the oral health disparities and achieving Georgia’s target outcomes include a shortage of dentists in areas of the state, unwillingness of dentists to participate in Medicaid due to low reimbursement rates and perceived high no-show rates, limited adult Medicaid dental benefits, cost of care, and unresolved patient education issues. The Georgia Department of Public Health has identified the following five dental outcomes in Georgia that need to improve : These disparities contribute to poor dental health outcomes in the state of Georgia. “Adults earning $50,000 or more per year are significantly more likely to visit a dentist than adults with income less than $15,000 a year (85% vs. “The proportion of non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic high school students who visit an emergency room (ER) or urgent care center for oral or dental problems (10.3% each) is twice the proportion of non-Hispanic white high school students who visit an ER for the same problems (4.9%).” “The prevalence of tooth decay among children with low socioeconomic status (SES) is 50% higher than the prevalence of tooth decay among children with high SES.”
Ī 2014 Georgia Department of Public Health report outlines the following dental health disparities in Georgia : Adults in families earning less than $15,000 per year were more than 2-1/2 times as likely to have lost six or more teeth from decay or gum disease as adults in families earning $35,000 or more. CDC survey data show low-income adults suffer more severe tooth loss than their wealthier counterparts. Untreated caries and periodontal (gum) disease will lead to tooth loss. Untreated caries can lead to problems with eating, speaking, and attending to learning in children, and work attendance in adults. Oral health is important for many reasons. The CDC indicates this disparity rate is true for teenagers and adults as well. In contrast, only 1 in 10 preschool children in families with incomes of $35,000 or higher had untreated caries. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that one in three children aged 2 through 5 in families with incomes below $10,000 experienced at least one decayed tooth that had not been treated. The OHICAN pilot project seeks to address the vast inequities in access to oral health care for marginalized, low-resourced, and minority communities by creating a comprehensive oral health network designed to increase access to preventive and restorative dental care in Georgia. Untreated tooth decay and tooth loss for adults is significantly higher in low-income groups and racial minority populations compared with their higher-income and non-Hispanic white counterparts. Poor oral health afflicts many low-income and vulnerable populations with wide disparities in untreated tooth decay, other oral diseases, and days of restricted activity for children. Changes to improve access to dental care can take place in a relatively short period of time when all who care and are impacted by this continued unmet oral health need work together. The work of OHICAN was designed to create a blueprint for potential solutions to these issues in order to foster oral health equity. Social, political and economic forces all contribute to varying degrees in terms of equity in healthcare.
The OHICAN pilot project looked to address the lack of equitable access to care by creating new points of access, training medical providers to perform oral exams and apply fluoride when indicated, thus increasing the oral health workforce, utilizing technology to bridge clinical practice, education, training and research, educating stakeholders to allow dental hygienists to provide preventive care under general supervision, and creating business models that will assist others who seek to create a dental home for those they serve. The consequences on inequitable access to dental care are significant for individuals, families and communities. The absence of preventive care often leads to unnecessary and expensive visits to hospital-based emergency departments to address the pain of dental disease but not the causal conditions. Lack of access to oral health can lead to unnecessary tooth decay, periodontal disease, pain, and the advancement of oral cancer. Poor oral health afflicts many low-income and other vulnerable populations.
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