Evaluation of a long-term oral health program by carers of children and adults with intellectual disabilities

Abstract

The oral health program presented here was undertaken in three French centers for persons with special needs. The program aimed to educate the carers about dental disease, to motivate them with regard to prevention, and to improve the oral hygiene and oral health of the residents. This study evaluated the impact of the program in terms of change in attitudes and behavior expressed by the carers by means of a questionnaire. Following demonstration of oral hygiene techniques on an individual basis, the number of residents who had their teeth cleaned more than once a day rose from 24% to 52% (p < 0.05). The percentage of carers able to clean both posterior and anterior teeth of their key residents increased from 24% to 60% (p < 0.05), and the percentage finding tooth cleaning easy increased from 36% to 60% (non-significant). The intervention was thus deemed moderately successful, although the carers continued to take better care of their own oral health than that of the residents. The need for ongoing training is emphasized, both for the carers of those with special needs and for the dental profession. The lack of a validated means of measuring the impact of such interventions on care providers for this population is discussed.