Oral Health

Topics

Why address oral health in SBHCs?

Oral health is critical to overall health, yet tooth decay is one of the most chronic childhood diseases in the United States. Poor oral health affects children’s quality of life, school performance, and success later in life. Cavities (tooth decay) are preventable, yet by age 8, over half of children (52%) have had a cavity in their primary teeth. Untreated cavities can cause pain and infections, leading to problems with eating, speaking, playing, and learning. Children with oral health problems miss more school and receive lower grades than children who don’t. Children whose families have low incomes are twice as likely to have cavities as children from families who have higher incomes.

How do SBHCs address oral health?

School-based health centers can positively affect students’ oral health in many ways, such as:

Providing education to parents or guardians about the importance of oral health assessment and evidence-based practices such as dental sealants and fluoride varnish.
Supporting oral health education in the classroom, including dental hygiene and the connection between oral health and overall health.
Providing oral health education, screening, assessment for early detection, onsite care when possible, and referral assistance as needed.
Coordinating with dental sealant and fluoride varnish programs or providing them in the SBHC, depending on the scope of practice and state laws.
Coordinating with community providers to develop a dental home for students.
Working with mental health providers, as there is a strong connection between oral health and mental health (anxiety, eating disorders, depression.)

School-Based Health Alliance Resources

Toolkit

Visit our oral health toolkit

Webinar

Find out our webinar recordings

Other resources

Learn more from our resources

Want further assistance implementing and improving oral health in your SBHC

Together, our consulting team brings decades of combined experience in planning, implementing, operating, evaluating, and improving community-provided school-based health care, including SBHCs. Learn more about consulting services here.

Expert Oral Health Partners

National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center

serves the maternal and child health community with high-quality oral health technical assistance and resources, including the School-Based Dental Sealant Programs: Second Edition

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Oral Health

is the nation’s leading science-based, data-driven, service organization that protects the public’s health. For more than 70 years, it has put science into action to help children stay healthy so they can grow and learn; to help families, businesses, and communities fight disease and stay strong; and to protect the public’s health.

Oral Health in America: Advances and Challenges

is a report from the National Institutes of Health that is the culmination of two years of research and writing by over 400 contributors. As a follow-up to the Surgeon General's Report on Oral Health in America, this report explores the nation's oral health over the last 20 years. The report includes unique sections on Oral Health across the Lifespan: Children, a section on Oral Health across the Lifespan: Adolescents, and a section on Pain, Mental Illness, Substance Use, and Oral Health.

Association of State & Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD)

is a national nonprofit organization representing the directors and staff of state/territorial public health agency programs for oral health. It promotes national policies, assists with program development, educates professionals, and provides information to officials through conferences and papers.

Smiles for Life: A national oral health curriculum

consists of eight 60-minute modules covering core areas of oral health relevant to health professionals. User competencies are measured through assessments at course completion. There is a Child Oral Health course of study.

Oral Health Nursing Education and Practice (OHNEP)

is at the vanguard of helping nurse practitioners, nurse-midwives, nurses, and other health professionals incorporate oral health into clinical education and patient care. As a national voice promoting interprofessional oral health integration and oral health equity, OHNEP advocates, educates, creates, and promotes interprofessional resources that educators and clinicians can use to improve the quality of oral health care in their patients. The OHNEP website serves as a knowledge center and portal for best practices.

American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA)

is the leading national organization for the more than 120,000 registered dental hygienists in the United States. The mission of the ADHAvis to advance the art and science of dental hygiene by ensuring access to quality oral health care; increasing awareness of the cost-effective benefits of prevention; promoting the highest standards of dental hygiene education, licensure, practice, and research; and representing and promoting the interests of dental hygienists. ADHA has a Council on Public Health.

American Network of Oral Health Coalitions

is a network designed to support the work of statewide oral health coalitions across the country.