Leadership

Barriers to care in dentistry involves anything that limits or prevents an individual from receiving adequate dental care. In most cases, these barriers are because of financial reasons, geographic location, or lack of oral health education. Other factors including cultural or language barriers could also attribute to limited access of care. This matters because when individuals are unable to receive dental care, they are susceptible to serious oral diseases that may lead to other complications or even death if left untreated. According to the American Dental Association (ADA), in the United States, 47 million Americans are affected by barriers to care. When job shadowing, I made a point to ask about current issues affecting the field of dentistry. The answer always included barriers to care in South Carolina. Through experiences and learning during my undergraduate journey, I am able to propose solutions to barriers to care in South Carolina by emphasizing preventative care and encouraging outreach to underserved areas. These solutions will help prevent serious health complications in patients and bring the attention of dentists to these areas of need.

Solutions

Emphasizing Preventative Care

One of the overlooked and often forgotten roles of a dentist is also serving as a teacher in addition to the physical execution of dental procedures. When I traveled to Nicaragua on a medical mission trip to help provide free dental care, I discovered that although the dental work given was beneficial, the greatest impact left on that community was oral health education. Our team did not have the means to permanently fix every unhealthy tooth there. However, teaching the people that regular brushing and flossing and healthy eating habits could prevent complications provided an everlasting effect. This lead me to think about the current barriers to care at home how preventative care and early intervention could help patients with limited access.

While the general oral health has improved greatly over the past several decades, it is still evident that many Americans continue to lack treatment. One of the reasons is inadequate knowledge on oral health along with the expensive costs of dental work. However, if patients are educated early to establish healthy habits, the costs of more complicated dental procedures can be avoided completely. This will save individuals money greatly in the long run. As a practicing dentist, early intervention describes the treatment of teeth, particularly on younger patients, with the intentions of preventative care. Many oral diseases are indeed preventable with early treatment and can save patients from severe pain and financial strain in the future.

Encouraging Outreach to Underserved Areas

Often, third world countries are thought of as the primary locations of healthcare shortages. However, some of the areas with the most needs are right at home in the United States. These areas are termed “Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas” by the ADA. There are over 5,000 of these in the US and it would take around 7,300 dentists immediately to cater to every location. 29 states have already granted the ability of mid-level providers without proper dental training to take on expanded roles to combat the issue. Unfortunately, this also exposes patients to dental work performed by a nonprofessional which can cause more complications than good for the patient in the future.

To encourage newly licensed dentists to serve these areas, they must first be made aware of the need and the impact that can be made. I believe that this can be best accomplished through collaboration with other dental students and dentists through organizations with the sole mission to serve these areas of need. Teamwork ensures that the service is done effectively and keeps the morale of the group high in conditions that might not be ideal for the dentist. Grants are already in place to encourage dentists to work in rural areas and with a mindset focused on service, the local dental need shortages will be eased.

Execution

Both preventative care and extension into underserved areas are related and can be combated together. While in dental school, community outreach can be conducted as a student to educate local underserved communities on oral health. This is the earliest form of preventative care. Fellow dental students with a common interest in serving rural areas would need to be recruited to help set up these outreach events and spread the effort. These events will include media campaigns, information sessions at local primary and secondary schools, and volunteering at local free clinics. Here are the actions I will take as a student:

Communicate with dentists in South Carolina to identify and pinpoint local areas of need to focus my efforts

Join and work with local chapters of the American Student Dental Association and Student National Dental Association at the school of dentistry to collaborate with other dental students

Promote oral healthcare via organization social media platforms and publicize the need of rural dentists at events hosted by these organizations

Partner with local schools to teach young people the importance of healthy oral care and diet habits

Volunteer at local clinics to learn how to cost effectively treat patients of low income and focus on educating the patients who come in

The most important component of each one of these action steps is the method of delivery of the oral health information. Patients will only take initiative of their well-being if they are receptive of the material provided to them. To effectively provide this information, I plan to create a manual that clearly explains basic oral healthcare in an easy-to-read format for young and old patients alike. It will be given to patients at the clinics and all promotional events along with a basic oral hygiene kit that includes a toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss. Funding and production of the manual will be assisted by the student dental organizations involved and donations from practicing dentists. The manual will include the following:

Diagrams and descriptions of basic oral anatomy and the importance of it for everyday living

A guide for everyday hygiene habits to maintain healthy teeth

A guide for parents to educate and monitor their children's oral healthcare habits

Tips for diet planning and explanations of how eating habits can effect the emergence of dental caries

Explanations of basic dental procedures and their importance in terms of early intervention

Evaluation

To evaluate the impact of preventative care, I believe that the most evident results will be seen directly from the patients. It is important that the patients already feel comfortable with me such that they will express their honest answers during evaluations. To achieve this, I must ensure that they are knowledgeable of the circumstances and practice adequate bedside manners when working with people, whether they are young children or adults. I will take the following steps to assess:

Ask to ensure that the patient understands the need and importance of any early intervention procedures needed. In the case of children, I would talk to the parent. If the dental work is necessary and the patient is receptive of the information, they will follow through with the procedure.

Monitor cases over a long period of time to assess whether early intervention and preventative care saves the patient from dental complications and financial strain. This is the ultimate goal and would deem the cause a success if the mission holds true.

Meet regularly with fellow dental students and practicing dentists to discuss new ideas or improvements on our methods.

Follow up with dentists and dental students who express interest in rural dentistry and form partnerships to add to the force against barriers to care.

These solutions will certainly make a positive impact on barriers to care in the local community. Although I do not expect a complete resolution to the problem as there are many other factors that attribute to barriers, many people who do not currently have access to basic dental care now have a solution to their problem and will be cared for on a long-term basis. The outreach portion of the plan will bring the importance of oral healthcare to the community and encourage future dentists to take part in the cause. Over years of practicing this way, I hope to greatly improve the overall well-being of the communities I serve and that other dentists will help spread the impact to bring down the barriers to care.