Corinna S Culler1, Milton Kotelchuck2, Eugene Declercq3, Karen Kuhlthau4, Kari Jones5, Karen M Yoder6. 1. Health Policy & Health Services Research, Boston University School of Dental Medicine, 715 Albany Street, 560, 3rd Floor, Boston, MA 02118. 2. MGH Center for Child & Adolescent Health Research and Policy, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, and Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114. 3. Department of Community Health Sciences, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02118. 4. Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114. 5. Barney Barnett School of Business & Free Enterprise, Florida Southern College, Lakeland, FL 33801. 6. Civic Engagement and Health Policy, Indiana University School of Dentistry, Indianapolis, IN 46202.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: School-based dental programs target high-risk communities and reduce barriers to obtaining dental services by delivering care to students in their schools. We describe the evaluation of a school-based dental program operating in Chelsea, a city north of Boston, with a low-income and largely minority population, by comparing participants' oral health to a Massachusetts oral health assessment. METHODS: Standardized dental screenings were conducted for students in kindergarten, third, and sixth grades. Outcomes were compared in bivariate analysis, stratified by grade and income levels. RESULTS: A greater percentage of Chelsea students had untreated decay and severe treatment need than students statewide. Yet, fewer Chelsea third graders had severe treatment need, and more had dental sealants. There was no significant difference in the percentage of Chelsea students having severe treatment need or dental sealants by income level. CONCLUSIONS: Students participating in our program do not have lower decay levels than students statewide. However, they do have lower levels of severe treatment need, likely due to treatment referrals. Our results confirm that school-based prevention programs can lead to increased prevalence of dental sealants among high-risk populations. Results provide support for the establishment of full-service school-based programs in similar communities.
BACKGROUND: School-based dental programs target high-risk communities and reduce barriers to obtaining dental services by delivering care to students in their schools. We describe the evaluation of a school-based dental program operating in Chelsea, a city north of Boston, with a low-income and largely minority population, by comparing participants' oral health to a Massachusetts oral health assessment. METHODS: Standardized dental screenings were conducted for students in kindergarten, third, and sixth grades. Outcomes were compared in bivariate analysis, stratified by grade and income levels. RESULTS: A greater percentage of Chelsea students had untreated decay and severe treatment need than students statewide. Yet, fewer Chelsea third graders had severe treatment need, and more had dental sealants. There was no significant difference in the percentage of Chelsea students having severe treatment need or dental sealants by income level. CONCLUSIONS: Students participating in our program do not have lower decay levels than students statewide. However, they do have lower levels of severe treatment need, likely due to treatment referrals. Our results confirm that school-based prevention programs can lead to increased prevalence of dental sealants among high-risk populations. Results provide support for the establishment of full-service school-based programs in similar communities.