Iowa's Public Health‐Based Infant Oral Health Program: A Decade of Experience

Abstract

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that children have their first dental visit no later than age one. However, not all dental schools have made hands-on infant oral health programs a reality in their predoctoral programs. To target high-caries risk infants/toddlers and provide dental students more hands-on experience with this age group, the University of Iowa Department of Pediatric Dentistry established an Infant Oral Health Program (IOHP) affiliated with the local Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) clinic. This article reports the IOHP activities and describes how this program is integrated into a dental school curriculum. Most of the children served were around age one, from racial and ethnic minority groups, and had never been to the dentist. More than 600 fourth-year dental students received hands-on experience providing preventive dental care for infants and toddlers. A 2004 survey of dentists who graduated from the University of Iowa suggested that those who rotated at the IOHP while in dental school were more willing to see very young children when compared to dentists who did not rotate at the IOHP. These findings suggest that community-based IOHPs can provide an important community resource for preventive dental care for high-caries risk young children, while complementing the pediatric dental experience in a dental school curriculum.

Age at and Reasons for the First Dental Visit

“…Regarding the recommendations of professional organizations for the fi rst appointment of children with the dentist before the age of 1 year, some universities have develop public health programs associated with the oral health of the youngest population. 13 Studies on the awareness of dentists on the importance of early fi rst dental visit show different data on the number of those familiar with the recommendations that children visit dental offi ces before the age of 1 year. [14][15][16] There has been no study of the fi rst dental visit and the reason for it in Bulgaria which motivated the conduction of the present study.…”

The Impact of an Infant Oral Health Program on Dental Students’ Knowledge and Attitudes

“…The inclusion of education on oral health risk assessment, anticipatory guidance, and early intervention in the curricula of health professions programs has been found to be effective in increasing the establishment of a dental home at an early age 8 – 10 . However, other studies have found that the majority of pediatricians and general dentists do not advise patients/caregivers to have their child see a dentist by one year of age, which emphasizes the need for increased infant oral health care education in medical and dental programs 11 , 12 .…”

Infant and Toddler Oral Health: Attitudes and Practice Behaviors of North Carolina Dental Hygienists

“…It is important to mention that cultural proficiency also played a significant role in the comfort of those students who spoke their patient's first language. A similar study assessed the impact of a different infant oral health program affiliated with a local community health center 22 . Those authors found that graduates of the program who had this experience were more likely to recommend care of children before their second birthday and reported greater willingness to care for young children in their practices.…”