**3.3 Oral health promotion**

Promoting oral health includes, but goes beyond, health education for individual patients and their parents/guardians/carers. The Ottawa Charter principles for Oral Health Promotion (World Health Organization, 1986) are fundamental pillars in underpinning oral health promotion. They emphasise the importance of a population approach to health rather than just an individual approach which includes:


#### (WHO, 1986)

We have seen greater emphasis on the care of vulnerable groups influencing health policy and action over the past decade, which includes the creation of the new specialty and the beginnings of a reorientation of health services towards prevention. However, action needs to occur on all of the above levels. For example, the environment in residential homes and community homes should be health enhancing with a low sugar diet and policies which promote regular effective oral hygiene. It is important to work with community groups and develop the personal skills of people with learning disabilities and their parents/guardians/carers. Furthermore, oral diseases share common risk factors with many

One of the challenges for a service providing care for people with impairment or disability is the time that is required to plan, organise and deliver care for patients. In a health care system where there is increasing emphasis on 'value for money' and understanding the cost of care, if is necessary to be able to explain the time and costs involved in patient management to commissioners of care. Therefore, a case mix toolkit has been developed and piloted by Sheffield working with a number of other dental services in England and Wales (British Dental Association, 2008). It provides a tool for measuring the level of impairment and disability, of patients in conjunction with the volume of service activity. This should provide meaningful activity data for commissioners about the patient base and reflect the additional time, and resources, required to provide care for many patients with special

Together with recommended 'weightings' these provide an overall patient 'complexity score'. This does not include any score for the complexity of the dental care, but rather time and patient management which should therefore explain the time involve and thus the cost

Promoting oral health includes, but goes beyond, health education for individual patients and their parents/guardians/carers. The Ottawa Charter principles for Oral Health Promotion (World Health Organization, 1986) are fundamental pillars in underpinning oral health promotion. They emphasise the importance of a population approach to health rather

We have seen greater emphasis on the care of vulnerable groups influencing health policy and action over the past decade, which includes the creation of the new specialty and the beginnings of a reorientation of health services towards prevention. However, action needs to occur on all of the above levels. For example, the environment in residential homes and community homes should be health enhancing with a low sugar diet and policies which promote regular effective oral hygiene. It is important to work with community groups and develop the personal skills of people with learning disabilities and their parents/guardians/carers. Furthermore, oral diseases share common risk factors with many

**3.2.4 Monitoring care for people with special needs** 

needs. The toolkit measures: • Ability to communicate • Ability to co-operate • Medical status • Oral risk factors • Access to oral care

of their management.

(WHO, 1986)

**3.3 Oral health promotion** 

1. building healthy public policy 2. creating supportive environments 3. strengthening community action 4. developing personal skills and 5. re-orientating health services

• Legal and ethical barriers to care.

than just an individual approach which includes:

leading chronic diseases which are the major cause of death in high income countries: cardiovascular diseases, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases and diabetes. The risk factors include unhealthy diet, tobacco, and alcohol. Poor oral hygiene is also a risk factor. This highlights the importance of working on these common risk factors in support of health in general.
