Priority 15 from the Oral and Dental Health PSP

UNCERTAINTY: What are the barriers/enablers to maintaining a healthy mouth (across different populations and settings)? (JLA PSP Priority 15)
Overall ranking 15
JLA question ID 0079/15
Explanatory note

Not available for this PSP
Evidence

Factors affecting children's adherence to regular dental attendance: “Factors identified at the patient level included parents' education, socioeconomic status, behavioral beliefs, perceived power and subjective norms. At the provider level, the authors identified communication and professional skills. At the system level, the authors identified collaborations between communities and health care professionals, as well as a formal policy of referring patients from family physicians andpediatricians to dentists.”

Oral hygiene in children: “Oral hygiene facilitators were found to be the concern about how clean were their teeth, oral health literacy of both children and parents and toothpaste appeal to children. Oral hygiene barriers were Children's boredom, low oral health literacy, forgetfulness and low socioeconomic level.”


Lack of robust evidence on barriers and facilitators that care aides perceive in providing oral care to nursing home residents, suggesting a need for robust research studies in this area. 

For full details of the evidence checked, please see the spreadsheet of data held on the JLA website.
Health Research Classification System category  Oral and gastrointestinal
Extra information provided by this PSP
Original uncertainty examples Original questions explored barriers to individuals’ own care, or those they care for. They covered barriers to performing basic oral care and attending dental appointments as well as enablers for changing behaviour. For example, what are the main barriers to you brushing your teeth twice a day? What are the main barriers to you attending a dentist at least every 24 months? How to incentivise change in behaviour and attitude?  Are the charges made by dentists putting people off visiting? What are the main barriers to getting parents of young children to care for their and the children's teeth? What are the barriers to [carers from] performing best care?
Submitted by  6 x patients, carers or members of public, 4 x health professionals
PSP information
PSP unique ID 0079
PSP name Oral and Dental Health
Total number of uncertainties identified by this PSP 38  (To see a full list of all uncertainties identified, please see the detailed spreadsheet held on the JLA website)
Date of priority setting workshop 12 December 2018