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Saturday, February 2, 2019

American Dental Associations Partnership with Denturists and Other Allied Dental Healthcare Professionals for Better Public Health Services

The 2000 Surgeon’s General Report on oral health has been “about” the Wyoming State Denturist Associations website http://www.wyomingstatedenturistassociation.org/about.html from the start. The presentation’s, Enhance Oral Health Workforce Capacity, applies to 2020, and 2030 Oral Health needs and disparities of America. Enhance Oral Health Workforce Capacity The lack of progress in supplying dental health professional shortage areas with needed professional personnel underscores the need for attention to the distribution of care providers, as well as the overall capacity of the collective workforce to meet the anticipated demand for oral health care as public understanding of its importance increases. To effect change in oral health workforce capacity, more training and recruitment efforts are needed. The lack of personnel with oral health expertise at all levels in public health programs remains a serious problem, as does the projected unmet oral health faculty and researcher needs. The movement of some states towards more flexible laws, including licensing experienced dentists by credentials, is a positive one and today, 42 states currently permit this activity. The goal of moving society toward optimal use of its health professionals is especially important at a time when people have become increasingly mobile, moving from town to city and state to state, and when projected oral health workforce shortages are already evident in many rural locales. State practice act changes that would permit, for example, alternative models of delivery of needed care for underserved populations, such as low-income children or institutionalized persons, would allow a more flexible and efficient workforce. Further, all health care professionals, whether trained at privately or publicly supported medical, dental, or allied health professional schools, need to be enlisted in local efforts to eliminate health disparities in America. These activities could include participating in state-funded programs for reducing disparities, part-time service in community clinics or in health care shortage areas, assisting in community-based surveillance and health assessment activities, participating in school-based disease prevention efforts, and volunteering in health-promotion and disease-prevention efforts such as tobacco cessation programs. Whether individuals are moved to act as volunteers in a community program, as members of a health voluntary or patient advocacy organization, employees in a private or public health agency, or health professionals at any level of research, education, or practice, the essential first step is to conduct a needs assessment and develop an oral health plan. Because the concept of integrating oral health with general health is intrinsic to the goals of this Call to Action, oral health plans should be developed with the intent of incorporating them into existing general health plans. Denturist means a person who is licensed to render removable oral prostheses services, education, and dental services, as well as other expanded duties required in the practice of a denturist’s duties. Denturitry means a denturist who, makes, provides, repairs or alters removable oral prosthetic appliances and other removable artificial devices which are inserted into the human mouth or which come into contact with the human mouth and its adjacent tissues and structures; The American Dental Association members (dentists), need to utilize valuable chair-time to focus on preventive and restorative responsibilities for children and young adults, regarding the epidemic of cavities and periodontal disease. The denturist profession provides more affordable, proper fitting, and functioning, oral prostheses, reducing the number of fully or partially edentulous people, along with reducing rates of obesity, depression, and ill-health. The aging population; along with limited oral healthcare in convalescent and eldercare facilities gives denturists opportunities to serve, offering aging communities better oral health and quality of life. The denturist profession is regulated across Canada and six U.S. states being Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Arizona and Maine. There is proposed legislation in a number of other states to regulate the denturist profession. The American Dental Association needs to govern and educate their members (dentists), along with submitting research and education to allied dental healthcare professionals, giving the professions opportunity in governing themselves, and working toward community public health. ADA and its state associated dental boards and organizations work and focus on their own self-interests, obstructing the missions and visions of allied dental healthcare professionals and their right to exist as independents and/or associated board members within the state dental practice acts. Gary W. Vollan L.D. P.O. Box 332, Basin, Wyoming 82410 307-202-2636 vollan@tctwest.net Italic Print Reference: U S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. Oral Health in America: A National Call to Action to Promote Oral Health, A Report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD: U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institutes of Health, 2000. Denturist Associations and Boards http://www.wyomingstatedenturistassociation.org Wyoming State https://www.oregondenturist.org Oregon https://wadenturist.com/ Washington State https://ibol.idaho.gov/IBOL/BoardPage.aspx?Bureau=DEN Idaho Denturitry Board https://dentalboard.az.gov/directory Arizona https://www.mainelda.com/ Maine https://nationaldenturist.com/ USA http://www.denturist.org/ Canada https://international-denturists.org https://www.nidcr.nih.gov/news-events/nidcr-news/surgeon-general-commissions-report-oral-health Denturist Education Programs https://batestech.edu/programs/denturist/ Oregon Bates Technical College https://americandenturistschool.com/ American Denturist School https://www.georgebrown.ca/S101-2012-2013/ George Brown Denturist Program

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