Oral Health, U.S. 2002 Annual Report
Section 7: DELIVERY OF DENTAL SERVICES
| 7.5 |
Community-based health centers with an oral health component |
Although dentists donate more services than do physicians to individuals who cannot afford care (Manski et al., 1999), access to care for basic dental services continues to be a problem for many, particularly the poor.
Less than 20% of local health departments promote community-based preventive services and provide dental services to children and some adults. Other sources of health care are community, migrant, homeless health, and public housing centers. By the late 1990s, nearly 60% of these centers had a dental component (Lockwood, 1997). Community-based health centers extend dental care to groups that traditionally have limited access to culturally competent and linguistically appropriate dental services (Brown & Lazar, 1999).
SOURCE OF DATA
Analyses reported here are based on the 2001 Uniform Data System (UDS), Bureau of Primary Health Care, Health Resources and Services Administration. The UDS is an integrated reporting system used by all grantees of the following primary care system development programs administered by the Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC): Community Health Center Program, Migrant Health Center Program, Health Care for the Homeless Program, Outreach and Primary Health Services for Homeless Children Program, and the Public Housing Primary Care Program. The BPHC collects data annually from its grantees to monitor and evaluate their performance and to ensure compliance with legislative mandates. Information collected includes data on services, staffing, and financing. For oral health, the services include preventive, restorative, and emergency services. Seven hundred forty-eight grantees were included in the system for 2001.
- Of the health center grantees in the UDS system, 71% indicated they offer at least one of three oral health components (preventive, restorative, and emergency dentistry) on-site, while 79% offer at least one of the three services either on-site or by referral with the grantee paying for the service.
- The percentages of grantees offering the three oral health services were as follows: 70% offered preventive dental care, 61% offered restorative services, 63% offered emergency dental services, and 58% offered all three services (Figure 7.5.1). The percentages offering the oral health components either on-site or by referral were as follows: 79% offered preventive services, 77% offered restorative services, 75% offered emergency services, and 68% offered all three services.
- Of the grantees that offer on-site dental services, 66% of the grantees have at least 1 full-time dentist, 26% have at least 1 full-time dental hygienist, and 74% have at least 1 full-time dental support staff. In addition, some grantees have dental staff working less than full-time as follows: 22% have less than 1 full-time dentist, 28% have less than 1 full-time dental hygienist, and 9% have less than 1 full-time dental support staff (Figure 7.5.2).
REFERENCES
Brown LJ, Lazar V. Minority dentists: why do we need them? Closing the Gap. U.S. Government Printing Office No. 1999–721–913/94337. Washington, DC: Office of Minority Health, 1999.
Lockwood SA. Characterization of dental programs administered by U.S. city/county health departments, 1995. Presented before the annual session of the American Association for Public Health Dentistry in Washington, DC, October 15, 1997.
Manski RJ, Moeller JF, Maas WR. Health expenditures: A comparison between dental expenditures and office-based medical expenditures, 1987.
J Am Dent Assoc 1999;5:659–666.
Figure 7.5.1. Percentage of community-based health centers offering various types of dental care services on-site, 2001
 [D]
Data source: 2001 Uniform Data System, Bureau of Primary Health Care, Health Resources and Services Administration.
Figure 7.5.2. Employment status of dental employees at community-based health centers
 [D]
Data source: 2001 Uniform Data System, Bureau of Primary Health Care, Health Resources and Services Administration.
|
