In 2018, the American Academy of Pediatrics established the Oral Health Knowledge Network (OHKN), a network designed to facilitate monthly virtual learning sessions for pediatric clinicians, allowing them to glean knowledge from experts, exchange resources, and build connections within the field.
In the year 2021, the American Academy of Pediatrics cooperated with the Center for Integration of Primary Care and Oral Health to evaluate the OHKN. Participants in the program were surveyed online, and their experiences were further explored via qualitative interviews as part of the mixed-method assessment. Information regarding their professional roles, prior commitments to medical-dental integration, and feedback on the OHKN learning sessions were solicited.
Of the 72 invited program participants, 41 individuals (57%) fulfilled the survey questionnaire, and a further 11 engaged in the follow-up qualitative interviews. Analysis of OHKN participation revealed support for the integration of oral health into primary care for both clinical and non-clinical personnel. The most impactful clinical result, according to 82% of respondents, was the integration of oral health training into medical practice. The acquisition of new information, as indicated by 85% of respondents, had the largest nonclinical effect. The participants' prior commitment to medical-dental integration, as well as the drivers behind their current integration efforts, were highlighted in the qualitative interviews.
Pediatric clinicians and nonclinicians alike experienced a positive influence from the OHKN, which, as a learning collaborative, effectively motivated and educated healthcare professionals. This facilitated improved access to oral health for patients through swift resource sharing and alterations to clinical practice.
The OHKN, a learning collaborative, had a successful impact on pediatric clinicians and non-clinicians, effectively educating and inspiring healthcare professionals to better patients' oral health access via prompt resource sharing and changes in clinical procedures.
This investigation examined the presence of behavioral health topics including anxiety disorder, depressive disorder, eating disorders, opioid use disorder, and intimate partner violence, within the postgraduate dental primary care curriculum.
A sequential mixed-methods approach constituted our research strategy. Directors of 265 Advanced Education in Graduate Dentistry and General Practice Residency programs were presented with a 46-item online questionnaire to gather data on the inclusion of behavioral health subject matter in their training programs. By applying multivariate logistic regression analysis, researchers aimed to determine the factors associated with the inclusion of this content. A content analysis was undertaken, supplementing interviews with 13 program directors, to determine and understand themes connected to inclusion.
Completing the survey were 111 program directors, reflecting a 42% response rate from the targeted population. A smaller proportion than 50% of programs included training on recognizing anxiety, depressive disorders, eating disorders, and intimate partner violence, in contrast to 86% of programs teaching the identification of opioid use disorder. RZ-2994 manufacturer Eight key themes affecting the integration of behavioral health into the curriculum, as identified by interview data, include: methods for resident training; motivations for adopting those methods; the evaluation of training effects on resident learning; quantifiable results of the program; obstacles to successful inclusion; proposed solutions for overcoming obstacles; and recommendations for enhancing the program's design. RZ-2994 manufacturer Programs in settings with low to no integration were significantly less likely (odds ratio = 0.009; 95% confidence interval, 0.002-0.047) to incorporate identifying depressive disorders into their curriculum than programs in settings exhibiting near-full integration. This difference accounted for a 91% decrease in likelihood. Organizational and governmental standards, along with the unique characteristics of the patient base, were major determinants for including behavioral health content. RZ-2994 manufacturer The organizational environment's prevailing culture and insufficient time availability hindered the inclusion of behavioral health training.
Residency programs in general dentistry and general practice should make an effort to add behavioral health awareness, focusing on conditions such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders, and intimate partner violence, to their existing curriculum.
General dentistry and general practice residency training programs should actively incorporate coursework on behavioral health conditions, including anxiety, depression, eating disorders, and intimate partner violence, into their curriculum.
Even with progress in scientific understanding and advancements in healthcare, health care disparities and inequities persist among various population groups. A cornerstone of our approach is educating and training the next generation of healthcare professionals in the crucial areas of social determinants of health (SDOH) and health equity. This goal demands a commitment from educational institutions, communities, and educators to reform health professions education, developing transformative educational systems better equipped to address the public health requirements of the 21st century.
Regular interaction among individuals with a common interest or passion cultivates expertise and forms communities of practice (CoPs), enabling them to perform their shared activity more effectively. The NCEAS CoP, or National Collaborative for Education to Address Social Determinants of Health, is actively working to incorporate Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) into the formal education of health practitioners. How health professions educators can collaborate for transformative health workforce education and development is exemplified by the NCEAS CoP. The NCEAS CoP's commitment to advancing health equity includes sharing evidence-based models of education and practice to address social determinants of health (SDOH) and cultivate a culture of health and well-being through models for transformative health professions education.
Through our collaborative work, we model the ability to establish cross-community and interprofessional partnerships, fostering the sharing of innovative curricular approaches that directly address the persistent systemic inequities driving health disparities, moral distress, and burnout among healthcare providers.
Illustrative of our work is the establishment of inter-community and inter-professional partnerships, which facilitate the unfettered exchange of innovative curricula and ideas to counteract the persistent health disparities and inequities, a problem that fuels moral distress and professional burnout among healthcare workers.
Mental health stigma, a substantial barrier well-documented in the literature, profoundly impedes access to both mental and physical healthcare. Integrated behavioral health (IBH) programs, which place behavioral and mental health services within primary care, may lessen the stigma experienced by individuals seeking these services. The study's primary focus was on evaluating the views of patients and healthcare practitioners regarding mental illness stigma as an obstacle to engagement with integrated behavioral health (IBH), and on identifying approaches to diminish stigma, promote conversations about mental health, and expand access to IBH services.
A prior year's cohort of 16 patients referred to IBH and 15 healthcare professionals, including 12 primary care physicians and 3 psychologists, were subjected to semi-structured interviews. Transcriptions of interviews were independently coded by two coders, utilizing an inductive approach to identify themes and subthemes relevant to barriers, facilitators, and recommendations.
Patient and healthcare professional interviews yielded ten common threads, illuminating complementary perspectives on barriers, facilitators, and suggested improvements. Stigma, arising from various sources including professionals, families, and the public, compounded by self-stigma, avoidance, and the internalization of negative stereotypes, acted as formidable barriers. In terms of facilitators and recommendations, strategies like normalizing mental health discussions, utilizing patient-centered and empathetic communication styles, health care professionals sharing personal experiences, and adapting discussions to individual patient understanding were emphasized.
Conversations about mental health, delivered with patient-centered care, can help healthcare professionals reduce stigma by promoting professional self-disclosure while customizing their communication to the patient's preferred method of understanding.
By fostering conversations about mental health that normalize the subject, utilizing patient-centric communication styles, encouraging open professional self-disclosure, and tailoring their approach to individual patient needs, healthcare professionals can help reduce the stigma associated with mental illness.
More individuals gravitate towards primary care compared to seeking oral health services. By incorporating oral health education into primary care training, a more comprehensive healthcare system for millions of individuals can be established, thus promoting health equity. The 100 Million Mouths Campaign (100MMC) is designed to create 50 state oral health education champions (OHECs) who will integrate oral health into primary care training program curricula.
OHECs, representing a diversity of fields and specialties, were recruited and trained in six pilot states (Alabama, Delaware, Iowa, Hawaii, Missouri, and Tennessee) between 2020 and 2021. A two-day schedule of 4-hour workshops formed the basis of the training program, complemented by subsequent monthly meetings. To evaluate the program's implementation, we conducted a comprehensive assessment, encompassing internal and external evaluations. This included post-workshop surveys, focus groups, and key informant interviews with OHECs, all designed to identify key process and outcome measures for primary care program engagement.
All six OHECs in the post-workshop survey concurred that the sessions offered valuable insights in formulating their next steps as a statewide OHEC.