In keeping with our goal to reduce health disparities and take the next step in furthering our outreach from children to adults, our hospital based oral health program is making a difference.
Among Douglas County adults, we were seeing high rates of tooth decay and poor oral health. Contributing factors are: limited access to preventative dental care, poverty, unfluoridated water and a culture where oral health is not prioritized. Systemic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke, dementia and arthritis are exacerbated by poor oral health.
With 13 years of experience providing preventative dental care to Douglas County youth through our Healthy Kids Outreach Program, Mercy Foundation saw an opportunity to integrate oral health with routine patient care to fulfill our shared mission of championing health equity for all patients at CHI Mercy Health. The expanded practice dental hygienist provides thorough oral health assessments and prevention-based care, such as fluoride varnish and sealants, to patients admitted to Mercy. If additional treatment is needed, a referral to a dentist will be made. Upon discharge, patients will receive a care plan and a follow up to ensure they are maintaining their plan and seeing a dental provider.
In addition, we know educating medical staff about oral health increases their understanding of the importance of good oral hygiene and its impact on overall health. Currently almost 600 employees have received oral health education. Likewise, patient education demonstrates how oral health affects chronic diseases.
The oral health education patients and staff receive is a platform to promote preventative care and empower individuals to maintain their oral health long after they are discharged from the hospital. Since March 2023, Jennie Hensley, our expanded practice dental hygienist, has seen 1,200 patients. Recognizing both our youth and hospital-based dental programs as a best-practice model, the program managers were invited to give a presentation at the Oregon Coordinated Care Organization statewide conference that included our local dental coordinated care organization, Advantage Dental.
Funded through grants secured by Mercy Foundation, the program is the next step in a proactive solution to addressing oral health disparities and improving patient outcomes because when it comes to oral health, little things can become life-threatening. We saw this when a patient admitted for sinusitis was screened by the expanded practice dental hygienist. What was initially thought to be mouth pain caused by dentures was actually mucormycosis, a serious but rare fungal infection caused by a certain mold which can lead to death without treatment. A CT scan followed by treatment at Oregon Health & Science University likely saved the patient's life. By bringing oral health care to patients as a cost effective strategy to reduce readmissions and improve overall health outcomes, we are raising the bar in the importance of good dental hygiene and its impact on chronic diseases.
More information: 541-677-4818 or mercygiving.org
Lisa Platt is the CHI Mercy Health Mercy Foundation president.
