January 2009

Introduction

This knowledge path about oral health for infants, children, adolescents, and pregnant women has been compiled by the National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC) and the Maternal and Child Health Library at Georgetown University. It offers a selection of current, high-quality resources that analyze data, describe effective programs, and report on policy and research aimed at improving access to oral health care and quality of oral health for infants, children, adolescents, and pregnant women. A separate section lists resources for consumers. The final part of the knowledge path presents resources on specific aspects of oral health: child care and Head Start, dental sealants, early childhood caries (ECC), fluoride varnish, K-12 education, pregnancy, school-based care, school evaluation mandates, and special health care needs. This knowledge path is designed for health professionals, program administrators, educators, policymakers, and consumers, and it will be updated annually.

Related knowledge path topics: See Health insurance and access to care for children and adolescents.

Resources for Professionals

Overview

For many Americans, oral health status has improved during the last two decades. However, although oral disease has declined significantly among school-age children, dental caries remains the most prevalent chronic disease of childhood, and among children ages 2-5, the incidence of dental caries in the primary teeth has increased. Children and adolescents with special health care needs, as well as those from certain racial and ethnic groups, experience disproportionately high incidences of oral disease.

To help ensure optimal oral health status, it is imperative that oral health promotion, oral disease prevention, and oral health care be a part of local, state, and national health policy agendas. Policies are needed that better integrate oral health and systemic health; increase access to health-promotion activities, preventive care, and treatment; and reduce financial and other barriers to care. In particular, policies must address oral health concerns and unmet treatment needs, especially among vulnerable populations.

Web Sites of National Organizations

• Academy of General Dentistry (AGD). Provides continuing education (CE) information and tools; journal articles; policies, guidelines, position statements, and fact sheets; and state and federal legislative and regulatory news and information. Some information is accessible to members only. Also see AGD's Find an AGD Dentist and KnowYourTeeth. Recent publications include
  
  White paper on increasing access to and utilization of oral health care services. (2008).
  
  
• American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD). Offers a collection of definitions, policies, clinical guidelines, endorsements, and resources for improving pediatric oral health. Also provides a press kit with facts, tips, and information about common pediatric oral health issues, journal article abstracts, and meeting and CE information. Recent resources include
  
  Dental Home AAPD Online Resource Center. Presents information about the dental home concept and resources to support the delivery of oral health care to all children, with a focus on infants.
  
  Fluoride therapy, rev. ed. (2008). [Guidelines].
  
  One year later: Medicaid's response to systemic problems revealed by the death of Deamonte Driver: Testimony of James J. Crall, D.D.S., Sc.D. (2008). [Congressional testimony].
  
  Also see AAPD's Find a Pediatric Dentist, Parent Resource Center, the Head Start Dental Home Initiative, policy statements about ECC, a policy statement for school entrance exams, and materials about caring for individuals with special health care needs.
  
  
• American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): Oral Health. Presents training and program information to promote improved child oral health by offering pediatricians and other child health professionals the tools and support they need to provide community-based, collaborative care. Offers a database of community pediatric oral health projects, a newsletter, policy statements, journal articles, and links to other resources. Recent materials include
  
  States with Medicaid funding for physical oral health screening and fluoride varnish. (2008). [Map and chart].
  
  Also see AAP's training module, Oral Health Risk Assessment: Training for Pediatricians and Other Child Health Professionals, and Patient Education Online.
  
  
• American Association for Community Dental Programs (AACDP). Offers membership information; a newsletter, The Bellwether; annual meeting materials; and resources to support those serving the oral health needs of vulnerable populations at the community level.
  
  
• American Association of Public Health Dentistry (AAPHD). Contains program information for accredited dental public health residencies; a contact list for schools of public health and public health programs; meeting information; and a newsletter, Communique.
  
  
• American Dental Association (ADA). Contains journal articles, position statements, policy analyses, federal and state legislative information, news releases, and information about products, CE opportunities, meetings, and membership. Recent resources and initiatives include
  
  American Indian and Alaska Native Oral Health Access Summit: Summary report. (2008).
  
  Bisphenol A and dental materials, rev. ed. (2008). [Position statement].
  
  Give Kids a Smile! Provides background information and resources for this initiative to provide free oral health services to children from families with low incomes across the country during the first Friday in February each year.
  
  National Children's Dental Health Month (NCDHM). Presents information about this nationwide observance held every February to raise awareness about the importance of oral health. Resources for oral health professionals and teachers include a program-planning kit, posters, classroom ideas, and activity sheets for children.
  
  Report on the June 23, 2008, Medicaid Provider Symposium. (2008).
  
  Also see ADA's library catalog, Find a Dentist, resources for consumers; resources about dental sealants, ECC, and topical fluoride; and the Smile Smarts! Oral Health Curriculum.
  
  
• American Dental Education Association (ADEA). Presents membership, meeting, and professional development information and resources for dental educators and students in dental-education programs. Also offers dental-education policy and advocacy resources on topics that include federal legislation and regulation (see ADEA's newsletter, Washington Update), diversity and equity, recruitment and retention, work force, and access to health care. Recent publications include
  
  Oral health care: Essential to health care reform. (2008). [Policy statement].
  
  
• American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA). Offers CE courses, position papers, information about programs and grants, and testimony about oral health and access to care. Also see ADHA's resources for consumers.
  
  
• Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD). Contains project reports and program information for federally funded oral health activities; information about and links to each state and territory oral health program; links to resources and tools to support state and territorial dental directors in their efforts to build high-quality oral health programs; a newsletter, Oral Health Matters; and a list of members by state. ASTDD collaborates with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the development of oral health data systems and with the Children's Dental Health Project (CDHP) in the National Oral Health Policy Center. Recent resources and initiatives include
  
  Best Practice Approaches. Presents information about proven and promising practices for developing effective state, territorial, and community oral health programs. Includes a set of reports that describe public health strategies, summarize supporting evidence, review best practice criteria, and use current practices to illustrate successful implementation methods. Also offers a database of successful state oral health public health activities. For background information about this resource, see A history of the ASTDD Best Practices Project: The journey taken from 2000 to 2008 (2008).
  
  State data/surveillance template. (2008). This tool provides links to online data sources with state and national estimates for key oral health indicators to assist dental directors in finding oral health data relevant to the population they serve. The tool can be modified to create a personalized template, adding indicators and links to additional state and local data sources that are more current or that are available through collaboration with state and local partners.
  
  Synopses of state dental public health programs: Data for FY 2006-2007. (2008). [Report].
  
  Also see ASTDD's Safety net dental clinic manual, Mobile-portable dental manual, and brief about fluoride varnish.
  
  
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Supports several oral health initiatives:
  
  CDC's Division of Oral Health. Contains data systems, guidelines and recommendations, fact sheets, journal articles, and other resources to enhance oral disease prevention in state and community settings. Resources include
  
  
  • Community Water Fluoridation. Presents a collection of resources about the benefits, safety, statistics, engineering support, guidelines and recommendations, and other factors to consider with community water fluoridation and other fluoride products.
    
    
  • Oral health: Preventing cavities, gum disease, and tooth loss, rev. ed. (2008). [Issue brief].
    
    
  • Populations receiving optimally fluoridated public drinking water—United States, 1992-2006. (2008). [Report].
    
    
  • State Oral Health Programs. Offers information about CDC funding for state oral health programs, oral health program infrastructure development tools, oral health information by state and territory, and state oral health plans.
    
    
  • Also see CDC's resource about school-based dental sealant programs.
    
    
  Other resources about oral health from CDC:
  
  Guide to Community Preventive Services: Oral Health. Contains recommendations for population-based interventions addressing oral health.
  
  National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Presents the fact sheet, FASTATS: Oral and dental health, rev. ed. (2008). Also see the NCHS database, Data2010.
  
  
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Provides information about Medicaid oral health coverage for eligible individuals under age 21 as a required component of the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment (EPSDT) benefit. Also briefly describes the oral health services available through the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Recent resources include
  
  2008 national dental summary report. (2009).
  
  Medicaid and SCHIP Promising Practices. Describes promising oral health practices in use by states for their Medicaid and SCHIP programs.
  
  Medicaid/SCHIP state dental contacts. (2008). [Directory].
  
  Policy issues in the delivery of dental services to Medicaid children and their families. (2008). [Guideline].
  
  State reports 2008. (2009). This collection of reports reviews state EPSDT oral health services.
  
  Also see the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA): Medicaid Primer and the Medicaid Benefits database.
  
  
• Children's Dental Health Project (CDHP). Contains publications and program information about children's oral health, particularly on issues involving access to care, financing programs, health disparities, and work force. Recent publications include
  
  National Oral Health Policy Center launched. (2008). [Press release]. Children's Dental Health Project in collaboration with the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP), the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD), the Medicaid/SCHIP Dental Association (MSDA), and the National Academy of State Health Policy (NASHP) was awarded a 3-year grant to implement the policy center.
  
  Necessary reform to pediatric dental care under Medicaid. (2008). [Congressional testimony].
  
  One year later: Medicaid’s response to systemic problems revealed by the death of Deamonte Driver: Testimony of Burton L. Edelstein D.D.S., M.P.H. (2008). [Congressional testimony].
  
  Also see the National Oral Health Policy Center's issue brief about state laws requiring oral health screenings for school registration.
  
  
• Healthy People 2010. Offers information and publications about this national health-promotion and disease-prevention initiative that is coordinated by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) and includes an oral health agenda. See Data2010: The Healthy People 2010 Database and the HP2010 Information Access Project for access to published literature related to the Healthy People 2010 oral health objectives. Also learn how to participate in the development of Healthy People 2020.
  
  
• Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA): Medicaid Primer. Offers information to assist state and local health officials in understanding how Medicaid works and how it can ensure access to health services for underserved populations. A section is devoted to oral health services under Medicaid.
  
  
• Medicaid/SCHIP Dental Association (MSDA). Presents links to publications, meeting presentations, and other resources about state and national Medicaid and SCHIP oral health policies and practices. MSDA collaborates with the Children's Dental Health Project (CDHP) in the National Oral Health Policy Center. MSDA aims to provide state and national leadership and support to improve the delivery of oral health care to those enrolled in Medicaid and SCHIP.
  
  
• National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL): Children's Oral health. Presents information about the role that state legislators can play in improving children's oral health. Topics include Medicaid and SCHIP, access to services, work force, and prevention and awareness. Describes and links to exemplary state programs in each topic area. Also links to NCSL newsletter and magazine articles and other resources that address state efforts to improve children's oral health.
  
  
• National Health Law Program (NHeLP). Offers issue briefs, case dockets, and other resources about Medicaid, SCHIP, and children's access to health care, including oral health care. NHeLP is a national public-interest law firm that aims to improve health care for families with low incomes or in minority groups, the elderly, and people with disabilities.
  
  
• National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR). Offers an oral and craniofacial data system, News from NIDCR, resources for consumers, suggestions for finding dental care, and resources about oral health care for individuals with special health care needs. Also includes information about research, funding, clinical trials, and training. Some resources are available in Spanish. NIDCR is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC). Offers a searchable collection of print and electronic materials. The Oral health resource bulletin lists recent, noteworthy items in the collection, and OHRC's A-Z List links to materials by topic. OHRC also offers a database describing oral health projects funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) and a database of projects funded by the Office of Head Start (OHS), news alerts and online discussion lists, distance learning curricula, and links to resources about oral health. OHRC is supported by MCHB. Resources include
  
  A way with words: Guidelines for writing oral health materials for audiences with limited literacy. (2008).
  
  Bright Futures Oral Health Toolbox. Links to guides, curricula, screening and risk-assessment tools, and anticipatory guidance tools.
  
  Oral health resource bulletin. (2008).
  
  Also see OHRC's resources for consumers and resources about Head Start, dental sealants, ECC, fluoride varnish, pregnancy, school-based care, and special health care needs.
  
  
• National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA). Presents forms, manuals, articles and other background information, a newsletter, patient-education materials, and other resources for establishing and operating a community oral health clinic. NNOHA is a nationwide network of oral health professionals who care for patients in migrant, homeless, and community health centers.
  
  
• Oral Health America (OHA). Contains information about its public-education campaigns to address oral health issues such as dental caries, spit tobacco, dental sealants, community water fluoridation, and disparities in oral health and access to care. A recent report is
  
  Keep Kansas smiling: Oral health in the sunflower state—Kansas Oral Health Grading Project 2009. (2009).
  
  OHA also publishes a newsletter and two school-based oral health initiatives.
  
  
• Pipeline, Profession, and Practice: Community-Based Dental Education Program (Dental Pipeline). Presents information and background resources for this collaborative of U.S. dental schools that works to reduce oral health disparities through the recruitment and retention of underrepresented minority and lower-income students and the integration of community-based student rotations into curricula. The Dental Pipeline is a national program supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).
  

  
  

Additional Resources from National Organizations

• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). 2003-. National healthcare disparities report. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). This annual report provides an overview of disparities in quality of and access to health care among racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups in the United States and tracks the nation's progress toward reducing disparities. View the chapter, Maternal and child health, to view measures relevant to children and adolescents ages 2-17 with untreated dental caries by race, ethnicity, and income (Fig. 4.44) and children and adolescents ages 2-17 with a dental visit in the past year by race, ethnicity, and income (Fig 4.45).
  
  
• Alliance for Health Reform, Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (KCMU). 2008. Dental health: Nurturing the health care system’s neglected stepchild. Washington, DC: Alliance for Health Reform, Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured. This collection of resources is from a July 2008 briefing that examined oral health in the broader conversation of improving the quality of and expanding access to health care. Resources include transcripts, an event summary, an online video, a Webcast, a Podcast, speaker presentations, and source documents and background materials.
  
  
• Borchgrevink A, Snyder A, Gehshan S. 2008. The effects of Medicaid reimbursement rates on access to dental care. Portland, ME: National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP). This report presents findings from a study to assess the effects of raising Medicaid reimbursement rates on access to oral health care in six states (Alabama, Michigan, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Washington) and to compare these states' experiences to California's.
  
  
• Children's Defense Fund Healthy Child Campaign. 2008. Disparities in children's health and health coverage. Washington, DC: Children's Defense Fund (CDF). This fact sheet describes disparities in health and health insurance coverage for infants, children, and adolescents in minority groups from before birth into adulthood compared to white infants, children, and adolescents. Facts are presented about oral health disparities as well as about disparities in prenatal care, low birthweight, infant mortality, asthma, lead poisoning, and childhood obesity.
  
  
• Council of State Governments (CSG), Healthy States Initiative. 2008. Promoting improved oral health. Lexington, KY: Council of State Governments (CSG). This policy brief provides suggestions about what state legislators need to know about oral health and what they can do to improve it. Contents include examples of policies in Arkansas, Colorado, Tennessee, and Ohio.
  
  
• Council of State Governments (CSG), Healthy States Initiative. 2008. Talking points: Preventing tooth decay. Lexington, KY: Council of State Governments (CSG). This fact sheet presents talking points for state legislators about tooth-decay prevention. Topics include the importance of preventing tooth decay, the costs of oral diseases and oral health care, tooth decay in children, how tooth decay can be prevented, and what legislators can do to help promote oral health.
  
  
• Felland LE, Lauer JR., Cunningham PJ. 2008. Community efforts to expand dental services for low-income people. Washington, DC: Center for Studying Health System Change. This brief describes barriers to good oral health and programs offered to increase access to oral health services. Topics include challenges people with low incomes face in obtaining oral health coverage and care, federal programs affecting access to oral health services, significant gaps in the dental safety net, and community efforts to expand oral health services.
  
  
• Gehshan S, Snyder A, Paradise J. 2008. Filling an urgent need: Improving children's access to dental care in Medicaid and SCHIP. Washington, DC: Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (KCMU); Portland, ME: National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP). This report describes a meeting of state and national experts held in October 2007 to address children's access to oral health care in Medicaid and SCHIP programs and to exchange information and assessments about what has worked best to improve access. Topics include provider participation, the oral health work force, dental benefits, oral health education and patient support, data collection, monitoring, and evaluation, and systemic reforms in managing oral disease as a chronic disease.
  
  
• George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, Rapid Public Health Policy Response Project. 2008. Pediatric dentistry: How can dental care for low-income children be improved? Washington, DC: George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services. This paper describes the causes and consequences of oral diseases that disproportionately affect the nation's most vulnerable children and the strategies available to address these diseases.
  
  
• Government Accountability Office (GAO). 2008. Medicaid: Extent of dental disease in children has not decreased, and millions are estimated to have untreated tooth decay. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). This report presents information from national health surveys on key indicators of the oral health status of children in Medicaid, specifically, the rate of oral disease, children's receipt of oral health care, and changes in these indicators over time.
  
  
• Grantmakers in Health. 2008. Critical services for our children: Integrating mental and oral health into primary care. Washington, DC: Grantmakers in Health. This issue brief summarizes an April 2007 discussion among grantmakers and health services researchers about improving the pediatric health care system by better integrating oral and mental health services into primary care. An executive summary is available.
  
  
• Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (KCMU). 2008. Dental coverage and care for low-income children: The role of Medicaid and SCHIP, rev. ed. Washington, DC: Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (KCMU). This fact sheet outlines the importance of oral health care for children, disparities in children's oral disease and access to oral health care, coverage of oral health care in Medicaid and SCHIP, and initiatives to increase access to care for children.
  
  
• Martin AB, Wang E, Probst JC, Hale N, Johnson AO. 2008. Dental health and access to care among rural children: A national and state portrait. Columbia, SC: South Carolina Rural Health Research Center. This executive summary provides highlights of oral health status, use of preventive services, and dental insurance among rural children compared to urban children.
  
  
• Maternal and Child Health Information Resource Center (MCHIRC). 2008. National and state surveillance efforts to monitor oral health disparities in children. Rockville, MD: Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). This collection of resources is from an April 2008 Web-based conference for maternal and child health professionals, researchers, and program planners about recent data on children’s oral health from selected national- and state-level surveillance efforts. The full program in audio and video formats, program transcripts, presenter information, and links to relevant resources are available.
  
  
• National Adolescent Health Information Center (NAHIC). 2008. 2008 fact sheet on health care access and utilization: Adolescents and young adults. San Francisco, CA: National Adolescent Health Information Center (NAHIC). This fact sheet provides data on health insurance coverage, preventive and other health services, and unmet health care needs (including unmet oral health care needs) among adolescents and young adults ages 12-24, including those with special health care needs.
  
  
• Pew Center on the States. 2008. Advancing children's dental health. Philadelphia, PA: Pew Charitable Trusts. This fact sheet describes a new initiative by the Pew Center on the States to improve access to oral health care for disadvantaged children.
  
  
• Snyder A, Gehshan S. 2008. State health reform: How do dental benefits fit in?—Options for policy makers. Portland, ME: National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP). This report explores how states can include dental benefits within a health-care-reform plan and describes the experiences of Maine, Massachusetts, and Vermont.
  

  
  

Web Sites of State Organizations

• California Dental Association (CDA) Foundation: Access to Care. Presents information about its programs to increase access to oral health care for underserved populations, including infants and young children and children with special health care needs. CDA also offers program information and materials for California's kindergarten oral health evaluation requirement. Also see CDA's patient-education tools and First Smiles.
  
  
• Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment: Oral Health Program. Contains information about and resources to support a school-based dental sealant program, a school fluoride mouthrinse program, community water fluoridation, and an oral health surveillance system. Other resources include a dental-emergency flip chart, oral health program guidelines for school districts, an ECC fact sheet, and reports about the oral health status of children in Colorado. Some materials are available in Spanish.
  
  
• Iowa Department of Public Health: Oral Health Bureau. Contains program information and reports about Iowa's efforts to improve the oral health of all residents. Oral health programs for pregnant women, infants, children, and adolescents include a school-based dental sealant program, a fluoride varnish program, an EPSDT oral services program, and the Iowa Access to Baby and Child Dentistry Program. Includes a collection of resources to support Iowa's new school dental screening requirement.
  
  
• Kansas Department of Health and the Environment: Oral Health Initiative. Offers information about efforts to improve oral health in Kansas via oral health education, oral disease prevention, oral health assessment, and access to oral health care. Includes information and resources for its statewide school oral health screening program and a collection of oral health fact sheets.
  
  
• Massachusetts Office of Health and Human Services: Oral Health. Offers fact sheets and reports about community water fluoridation, the dental workforce, dental sealants, diabetes, pregnancy, fluoride mouthrinse, and fluoride varnish applications (available in 9 languages). Also see the Catalyst Institute report about the oral health status of Massachusetts' public school students.
  
  
• New York State Department of Health: Oral Health. Offers information and resources about the connection between oral health and general health, oral health across the lifespan, the impact of oral disease, and New York's oral health programs and initiatives, many of which are targeted to pregnant women, infants, children, adolescents, and children and adolescents with special health care needs. Also see the CE activity, Oral health care during pregnancy and early childhood.
  
  
• North Carolina Division of Public Health: Oral Health Section (OHS). Presents a collection of oral health education materials about oral hygiene, dental plaque, dental sealants, fluoride, nutrition, safety and first aid, and tooth anatomy and development. Some materials are available in Spanish. Also includes oral health promotion campaign materials and efforts to increase access to oral health care.
  
  
• South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) Division of Oral Health. Presents oral health materials for professionals and families on topics that include ECC, water fluoridation and fluoride varnishes, school-based oral health programs, oral health evaluations, and the state oral health plan. Also see South Carolina's collection of materials for early childhood education programs and schools.
  
  
• Tennessee Department of Health: Oral Health Services. Presents information about the history of the oral health program in Tennessee, a school-based oral health care project, dental clinics, and fluoride programs, including a fluoride varnish program and community water fluoridation programs. Also presents a set of oral health fact sheets about healthy oral development, the importance and care of children's teeth, primary and permanent tooth eruption, ECC, fluoride, dental sealants, mouth guards, nutrition, pregnancy, preventing tooth decay, periodontal disease, oral-injury prevention, and tobacco use. Recent publications include
  
  Standards of practice manual for dental public health, rev. ed. (2008).
  
  
• Washington Dental Service (WDS) Foundation: Access to Baby and Child Dentistry (ABCD). Presents program information and materials that can be used to replicate this model program focusing on preventive and restorative oral health care for infants and children from birth to age 6 who are eligible for Medicaid, with emphasis on enrollment by age 1. This ABCD program operates throughout Washington State.
  
  
• Wisconsin Oral Health Program. Contains program information, reports, and fact sheets on topics such as ECC, dental sealants, fluoride, and smokeless tobacco. Also provides training resources, including samples of agency protocols for the placement of dental sealants and the application of fluoride varnish in public health settings and training materials for integrating oral-health-promotion and oral-health-prevention services into health visits.
  
  
• Also see the Ohio Dental Safety Net Information Center. Many of the resources listed in the sections, Web Sites of National Organizations and Additional Resources from National Organizations offer state-specific reports and/or state oral health program information. In addition, several items by and about state oral health programs are listed in the data and programs database sections and in the sections within Resources on Specific Aspects of Oral Health.
  

  
  

Additional Resources from State Organizations

• Bates T, Chapman S. 2008. Diversity in California’s health professions: Dentistry. San Francisco, CA: Center for the Health Professions. This issue brief presents data describing key characteristics of California’s dentistry labor force.
  
  
• Center for Health Care Strategies. 2008. New Jersey Smiles: A Medicaid quality collaborative to improve oral health in kids. Hamilton, NJ: Center for Health Care Strategies. This chart outlines different proposed frameworks in New Jersey to increase the number of infants and children from birth to age 5 who have received an annual oral health visit. The chart outlines identification, outreach, and intervention steps to take and how outcomes will be measured.
  
  
• Diringer J, Phipps K. 2008. Expanding access to dental care through California’s community health centers. Oakland, CA: California HealthCare Foundation. This issue brief examines the difficulties facing federally qualified health centers that want to establish or expand oral health services for Californians with low incomes and offers recommendations for overcoming those difficulties.
  
  
• Hughes D, Howell E, Trenholm C, Hill, Dubay L. 2008. Three independent evaluations of Healthy Kids programs find dramatic gains in children's dental health care. Princeton, NJ: Mathematica Policy Research. This brief presents highlights from independent evaluations of the Healthy Kids programs in three California counties. These programs provide children from families with low incomes with comprehensive health insurance coverage, including a broad range of medical, dental, and vision care, prescription drugs, and mental health services. The brief describes some of the positive impacts that Healthy Kids has had on children's access to and use of oral health services.
  
  
• Mertz E. 2008. Registered dental hygienists in alternative practice: Increasing access to dental care in California. San Francisco, CA: Center for the Health Professions. This paper presents findings from a study to explore ways that policy modifications may improve use of the registered dental hygienist-advanced practice (RDHAP) work force and to examine the evolution of RDHAP practices and their progress toward expanding access to care for vulnerable populations. An executive summary is available. Also see a related report, Registered dental hygienists in California: Regional labor market chart book (2005-2006) (2008).
  
  
• Pourat N.2008. Snapshot: Haves and have-nots: A look at children's use of dental care in California. Oakland, CA: California HealthCare Foundation. This report examines the racial and ethnic differences and other factors that contribute to disparities in oral health care among California's children.
  
  
• Scott MK, Bingham D, Doherty M. 2008. The good practice: Treating underserved dental patients while staying afloat. Oakland, CA: California HealthCare Foundation. This guide aims to help community dental practices design or enhance clinical and business operations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the services they deliver. An audio report accompanies the report and recounts the experiences of three community dentists who treat individuals who are uninsured or who participate in Medi-Cal and how these dentists were able to improve their practices.
  
  
• Texas Dental Association. 2008. Building better oral health: A dental home for all Texans. Austin, TX: Texas Dental Association. This report identifies issues, needs, and challenges associated with improving the oral health of all Texans. Topics include the economic, medical, and social consequences of untreated oral disease and reasons why Texas must take action; the oral health care system in Texas (including school-based and Head Start preventive oral health services); state and national comparative data on the oral health status of Texas; and the oral health disparities that exist in Texas, particularly among populations that face special challenges in accessing oral health services.
  
  
• White BA, Monopoli MP, Souza BS. 2008. The oral health of Massachusetts' children. Westborough, MA: Catalyst Institute. This report presents findings from a study to assess the oral health status of Massachusetts' public school students (kindergarten, third grade, and sixth grade) by gathering baseline estimates of dental caries experience and other indicators. An executive summary is available.
  

  
  

Distance Learning Resources

• Mobile-Portable Dental Manual. Presents an online reference tool that focuses on using public health approaches to create health care systems to serve populations that have difficulty accessing the traditional system of oral health service delivery. The manual was published by the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD) and the American Association for Community Dental Programs (AACDP) and cross-references and links to the companion reference tool, Safety Net Dental Clinic Manual.
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC): Distance Learning. Presents a collection of materials:
  
  A Health Professional's Guide to Pediatric Oral Health Management. Comprises seven self-study modules to assist health professionals in managing the oral health of infants and young children.
  
  Open Wide: Oral Health Training for Health Professionals. Presents four self-study modules to help health and early childhood professionals working in community settings (e.g., Head Start and WIC staff) promote oral health in the course of promoting general health for infants, children, and their families.
  
  Seal America: The Prevention Invention, 2nd ed.
  
  Special Care: An Oral Health Professional's Guide to Serving Young Children with Special Health Care Needs.
  
  Also see the three distance learning curricula developed by OHRC for the Ohio Dental Safety Net Information Center, Head Start oral health curricula: At-a-glance (2008), and a bibliography of oral health curricula.
  
  
• National Public Health Training Center (PHTC) Network Distance Education Center. Offers a database of PHTC-developed distance learning resources to train a broad audience of health professionals in the core public health competencies to strengthen skills of public health workers. For training resources about oral health, go to 4. Select Subject Area(s); select Oral Health; and click on Search to get your results. PHTCs are funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and the database is a service of the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH).
  
  
• Ohio Dental Safety Net Information Center. Presents tools and information to start and maintain the operations and delivery of health care services in safety net dental clinics in Ohio. Offers three distance learning opportunities:
  
  Clinical Operations for Safety Net Dental Clinics in Ohio. Comprises six self-study modules about safety net dental clinic policies and procedures, human resources, health records, forms, billing and collections, purchasing and inventory management, patient appointments and care, infection control, environmental health, and safety.
  
  Financial Management for Safety Net Dental Clinics in Ohio. Offers five self-study modules for dental clinic staff about strategic planning, revenue, expenses, managing finances, and securing external funding.
  
  Oral Health Care for Young Children in Ohio. Presents four self-study modules to help oral health professionals learn about providing care to infants and children from birth through age 3. The modules cover anticipatory guidance and prevention, behavior management, restorative treatment, and managing dental emergencies.
  
  
• Oral Health Risk Assessment: Training for Pediatricians and Other Child Health Professionals. This online training module for pediatricians and other primary care health professionals describes how to conduct an oral health risk assessment and triage for infants and young children. Topics include the role of the child health professional in assessing children's oral health, the pathogenesis of dental caries, oral health risk assessment, prevention strategies, establishing a dental home, and oral health education. The module is presented by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
  
  
• Oral Health Resources for Health Professionals. Offers a collection of distance learning materials for physicians, residents, and medical students to improve their effectiveness in providing oral health services to infants and children. Materials include lectures in videotape and PowerPoint formats and case studies on topics such as teething and tooth eruption, caries etiology and risk assessment, toothbrushing, nutrition, barriers to oral health care, and fluoride treatments. This collection is presented by the University of Connecticut Health Center.
  
  
• Safety Net Dental Clinic Manual. Presents a training manual highlighting all aspects of dental clinic development as well as ongoing operations. Topics include partnerships and planning, facilities and staffing, financing, clinic operations, quality assurance, and quality improvement. The manual is a collaboration between the Ohio Department of Health, the Indian Health Service, and the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD), and it is continually updated. Also see the companion tool, Mobile-Portable Dental Manual.
  
  
• Smiles for Life: A National Oral Health Curriculum. Presents an oral health curriculum and resources for primary care health professionals. The curriculum contains seven modules about the relationship between oral and systemic health, child and adult oral health, emergencies, pregnancy, fluoride varnish, and the oral examination. The Web site also provides an implementation guide, educational objectives, test questions, resources for further learning, pocket cards, PDA applications, and posters in English and Spanish. The curriculum is produced by the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine (STFM).
  
  
• See the following professional associations for CE information: Academy of General Dentistry (AGD), American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD), American Dental Association (ADA), American Dental Education Association (ADEA), American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA), and Special Care Dentistry. Also see Resources on Specific Aspects of Oral Health for additional distance learning resources.
  

  
  

Databases

The databases listed below are excellent tools for identifying data, additional literature and research, and programs about oral health and infants, children, adolescents, and pregnant women. Many of the entries below contain tips on how to use the databases efficiently. Please note that databases vary in how terms should be entered; for example, some require quotation marks and others don't. Enter search phrases as shown in bold below.

Data

• Childstats.gov. Presents statistics and reports about children and families, including population and family characteristics, economic security, health, behavior, social environment, and education. Includes statistics about oral health. ChildStats.gov is a service of the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. The Forum's annual report, America's children: Key national indicators of well-being, details the status of children and families in the United States.
  
  
• Community Health Status Indicators (CHSI). Presents county-specific data on health status indicators obtained from a variety of federal agencies including the Department of Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Census Bureau, and the Department of Labor. Use the indicators to compare a county with counties similar in population composition and selected demographics and to characterize the overall health of a county and its citizens to support health planning. Select a state and county and click on Access to Care to view the number of dentists per 100,000 people. CHSI is a service of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).
  
  
• Data2010: The Healthy People 2010 Database. Contains monitoring data for tracking Healthy People 2010. To obtain oral health data, click on the field, Data by Focus Area. Under the field, Select a Focus Area, choose 21-Oral Health from the pop-up menu. Next, click on the button, Include Related Objectives from Other Focus Areas in the Table. Click on the Submit button, or use the other fields to narrow your search. This data set is provided by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) via CDC Wonder.
  
  
• Data Resource Center for Child and Adolescent Health (DRC). Provides access to and use of data from the National Survey of Children's Health, 2003, and the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs, 2001 & 2005/2006. Users can search and compare results on over 100 indicators of child health and well-being; view national and state profiles on key measures; explore survey content relevant to Healthy People 2010 objectives; and compare findings at all levels for children by age, race and ethnicity, income, or health status. Several health indicators address oral health. DRC is a project of the Child and Adolescent Health Measurement Initiative (CAHMI).
  
  
• Dental, Oral and Craniofacial Data Resource Center (DRC). Maintains a catalog of oral health surveys and archive of procedures related to oral health and a data-query system for oral health data from national health survey databases. DRC is a collaborative effort between the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) and CDC's Division of Oral Health.
  
  
• Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP): HCUPnet. Provides access to health statistics and information on hospital inpatient and emergency department utilization at the national, regional, and state levels. To identify data about hospital use related to oral health, select National Statistics on Children. Select Researcher, medical professional. Under type of query, select Statistics on specific diagnoses or procedures. Select a year (e.g., 2006). Select Diagnoses grouped by Clinical Classifications Software (CCS). Select Principal diagnosis. Under the field, Browse all CCS categories, scroll to 136 Disorders of teeth and jaw and 137 Disease of mouth. Hold the control key down, and click to select both categories. Click on Next. Select the outcomes and measures of interest (e.g., Number of discharges) and click on Next. Select patient and hospital characteristics (e.g., All patients in all hospitals) and click on Next. View your results. HCUP is an initiative of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
  
  
• Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS): Dental. Presents information on dental events from this set of large-scale surveys of families and individuals, their medical providers (e.g., doctors, hospitals, pharmacies), and employers across the United States. Includes source of payment, total payment and total charge, type of provider seen, and procedures associated with each dental event. MEPS is a service of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Recent statistical briefs include
  
  Dental coverage of children and young adults under age 21, United States, 1996 and 2006. (2008).
  
  
• National Quality Measures Clearinghouse (NQMC). Contains evidence-based health care quality measures and measure sets for health professionals, hospitals, and health plans to evaluate and improve the quality of health care for clients. To identify quality measures about oral health, enter the term "oral health" OR dental OR dentistry in the search box. Click on Search to get your results. The database is sponsored by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
  
  
• Oral Health Resources: Data Systems. Presents a collection of oral health data systems to monitor the prevalence of oral diseases and the factors influencing oral health in the United States. These systems are a collaborative effort between CDC's Division of Oral Health and the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD). The data systems are
  
  My Water's Fluoride. Presents information about the status of local water fluoridation systems. This database is currently available only for states that voluntarily participate in the Water Fluoridation Reporting System (WFRS).
  
  National Oral Health Surveillance System (NOHSS). Contains nine basic oral-health-surveillance indicators on the national and state levels: dental visits, teeth cleaning, tooth loss (complete and partial), fluoridation status, dental sealants, dental caries experience, untreated dental caries, and cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx.
  
  Oral Health Maps. Presents indicators of oral health and preventive interventions for oral health, such as water fluoridation status by state or county, using an interactive mapping application.
  
  Water Fluoridation Reporting System (WFRS). Contains a water-fluoridation-monitoring tool for state and tribal water fluoridation program managers and oral health program directors or managers. This system requires special authorization for access. WFRS is the data source for the annual fluoridation information in the National Oral Health Surveillance System (NOHSS).
  
  Also see the Synopses of State and Territorial Dental Public Health Programs and ASTDD's State data/surveillance template (2008). In addition, see the Dental, Oral and Craniofacial Data Resource Center (DRC), a collaborative effort between CDC's Division of Oral Health and the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR).
  
  
• State Health Facts Online. Contains state-level data on more than 500 health topics. Click on a state for individual state profiles, or click on specific topics to compare data for all states. For either option, select Health Status and scroll to and select Child Access to Medical and Dental Care. Scroll further to the Oral Health section (note: this data focuses on adults only) and make a selection. Return to the home page for another search. Select Providers and Service Use and scroll to Dentists to find the total number of dentists, the total number of dentists by gender, and the number of dentists by specialty field, including dental public health, orthodontics, and pedodontics. Information can be displayed as tables, graphs, or color-coded maps. This database is a service of the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).
  
  
• State Health Workforce Profiles. Compiles data on supply, demand, distribution, education, and use of health personnel, including dentists, dental hygienists, and dental assistants. Estimated numbers of workers indicate the size of the state's health work force. Per capita ratios facilitate comparisons with other states and the nation. The profiles were developed by the Center for Health Workforce Studies at the State University of New York at Albany.
  
  
• Title V Information System (Title V IS). Contains data from annual Title V Block Grant applications and reports submitted by all 59 U.S. states and jurisdictions. To learn about states' efforts to address oral health, conduct several searches. Select Measurement and Indicator Data. Under National Data, select National Performance Measures. Choose a report option (e.g., Most Recent Year Available). Select a state or region and Performance Measure #09 to find the percentage of third-grade students who have received protective sealants on at least one permanent molar tooth. Click on Start Search to get your results. Return to Measurement and Indicator Data and scroll to the section, State Data. Select State Priority Needs Keyword Search; Keyword: Oral Health; Population: Children (1 through 21); and the desired state or region to learn about programmatic efforts to improve oral health. Click on Start Search to get your results. Repeat the search and substitute Population: Pregnant Women. Return to Measurement and Indicator Data and scroll to the section, State Data. Select State Performance Measures and click on Search by Keyword/Population. Select Keyword: Oral Health and Population: Children (1 through 21). Click on Start Search to get your results. Repeat the search and substitute Population: Pregnant Women. Title V IS is a service of the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB).
  
  
• Also see the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) and the reports, National healthcare disparities report (2003-), Medicaid: Extent of dental disease in children has not decreased, and millions are estimated to have untreated tooth decay (2008), Diversity in California’s health professions: Dentistry (2008), and The oral health of Massachusetts' children (2008).
  

Literature and Research Databases

• American Dental Association (ADA) Library Catalog. Contains information about books, reports, guidelines, proceedings, dissertations, historical materials, and journal titles on a wide range of dentistry and oral health topics.
  
  
• ClinicalTrials.gov. Provides access to information about clinical research studies in human health, including oral health. Included are a summary of the purpose of the study, recruiting status, criteria for participation, location of the trial, and contact information. To identify oral-health-related studies involving infants, children, and adolescents, click on Search for Clinical Trials and select Advanced Search. Type mouth diseases OR tooth diseases in the Conditions field. Scroll to Age Group and select Child (birth-17). Click on Search to get your results. To identify oral-health-related studies involving pregnant women, click on Search for Clinical Trials and select Advanced Search. Type pregnancy in the Search Terms field and mouth diseases OR tooth diseases in the Conditions field. Click on Search to get your results. ClinicalTrials.gov is a service of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and is developed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
  
  
• Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. Presents systematic reviews of health care interventions internationally. Provides access to abstracts that can be browsed by title or by topic such as Oral Health. Access to the full-text article requires a per-view payment or a subscription that is available in many hospital and university health sciences libraries. The database is published by the Cochrane Collaboration, an international nonprofit organization based in the United Kingdom.
  
  
• Computer Retrieval of Information on Scientific Projects (CRISP). Contains information about federally funded biomedical research projects conducted at universities, hospitals, and other research institutions. Search CRISP to identify scientific concepts, emerging trends and techniques, or specific projects and/or investigators. Type oral health in the search term box of the Query Form. Click on Phrase and Submit Query to get your results. Conduct another search by typing dental dentistry. Click on Or and Submit Query to get your results. Narrow your searches by using the other fields in the search form (e.g., fiscal year, state). The database is maintained by the Office of Extramural Research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
  
  
• Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE). Contains summaries of systematic reviews that have met strict quality criteria. Included reviews must be about the effects of interventions. Each summary also provides a critical commentary on the quality of the review. Type ("oral health" OR "dental caries") AND (infant OR child OR adolescent OR pregnancy) in the search field and click on search to identify abstracts. DARE is produced and maintained by the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination at the University of York.
  
  
• HP2010 Information Access Project: Oral Health. Provides an automatic search mechanism for published literature indexed in PubMed related to the Healthy People 2010 oral health objectives. Also links to the narratives for each of these objectives and the complete chapter about oral health in the text, Healthy People 2010: Understanding and improving health, 2nd ed. (2000). This service is provided by the Partners in Information Access for the Public Health Workforce, a collaboration of federal agencies, public health organizations, and health sciences libraries.
  
  
• Maternal and Child Health Library at the National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health (NCEMCH), Georgetown University. Maintains several databases to collect, manage, and disseminate knowledge about maternal and child health (MCH), with special emphasis on knowledge gained from initiatives and programs supported by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). The library collaborates with the National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC) on the oral health content of the MCH Organizations Database and the bibliographic database:
  
  MCHLine^®. Comprises an online catalog of materials in the Maternal and Child Health Library. The OHRC collection of oral health print and electronic materials is also accessible via MCHLine^®.
  
  
• National Guideline Clearinghouse (NGC). Contains evidence-based clinical practice guidelines and related materials for health professionals. Identify guidelines by entering the following search phrase in the Search box: ("oral health" OR "dental health services") AND (infant OR child OR adolescent OR pregnancy). Click on Search to get your results. NGC is an initiative of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
  
  
• PubMed. Contains over 18 million citations for biomedical articles that date back to 1948. These citations are from MEDLINE and other life science journals. PubMed includes links to many sites providing full-text articles and other related resources. To identify articles about oral health and pregnancy, enter the following search phrase in PubMed: (oral health OR dental health services) AND pregnancy. Then, click on Limits, and make the following selections on the page: select a date (e.g. Published in the last 1 year); click on Languages: English; and select Tag Terms: MeSH Major Topic. Click on Go to get your results. To identify articles about oral health and infants, children, and adolescents, conduct a separate search. Enter the following search phrase in PubMed: oral health OR dental health services. Then, click on Limits, and make the following selections on the page: select a date (e.g. Published in the last 1 year); click on Languages: English; click on Ages: All Child (0-18 years); and select Tag Terms: MeSH Major Topic. Click on Go to get your results. Use MeSH to identify additional search terms for this or related searches (e.g., (oral health OR dental health services) AND dental caries). PubMed is a service of the National Library of Medicine (NLM). Also see HP2010 Information Access Project for links to automated PubMed searches related to the Healthy People 2010 oral health objectives.
  
  
• Also see the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) Database.
  

Programs Databases

• AAP Community Pediatrics Grants/Projects Searchable Database. Comprises an archive of community pediatrics grant projects. To identify oral health projects, select Topic: Oral/Dental Health. Click on Basic Submit to get your results. To narrow your search, select a target population and/or a state, territory, or country.
  
  
• Discretionary Grant Information System (DGIS). Contains program and performance measure data for more than 900 grants issued by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB). To view performance measure data for three MCHB programs about oral health, select Performance Measures and Program. Data about the three programs must be searched and viewed separately, as follows: (1) under Child and Adolescent Health, select Children's Oral Healthcare Access Program, click on Next, select the performance measure, and click on Next to view the data; (2) under Child and Adolescent Health, select Oral Health, click on Next, select the performance measure, and click on Next to view the data; and (3) under Training, select Pediatric Dentistry, click on Next, select a performance measure, and click on Next to view the data. For program information about grants related to oral health, select Abstracts. Type dental dentist =oral in the keyword field, select Any of the words, and click on Search to get your results.
  
  
• Health Services Research Projects in Progress (HSRProj). Provides information about ongoing health services research and public health projects. To identify projects on the topic, enter the search phrase ("oral health" OR dental) AND (infant OR child OR adolescent OR pregnancy). Click on Search to get your results. HSRProj is funded by the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
  
  
• Maternal and Child Health Organizations Database. Lists over 2,000 government, professional, and voluntary organizations involved in MCH activities, primarily at a national level. View OHRC's list of links to clearinghouses and resource centers, government agencies (federal and state), foundations, Head Start-related centers and offices, policy and research centers, professional associations, programs and initiatives, and voluntary organizations. For a broader list of oral health organizations, enter "oral health" in the search box. Click on Search to get your results. This database is a service of the Maternal and Child Health Library.
  
  
• MCHB-Funded Projects Database. Contains information about oral health projects funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) nationwide. This database is a service of the National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC). Final reports are available from several of these projects and include
  
  Final progress report: State Oral Health Collaborative Systems Grant: Connecticut community-based sealant program. (2008).
  
  North Dakota State Oral Health Collaborative Systems Grant: End of project final report. (2008).
  
  SEAL INDIANA Final Report: State Oral Health Collaborative Systems Grant Program (SOHCS). (2008).
  
  Also see the materials from the MCHB-funded meeting and project, 1st Annual TOHSS [Targeted Oral Health Service Systems] Grantee Meeting: Maximizing potential. (2008) and MCHB's Discretionary Grant Information System (DGIS).
  
  
• Medicaid Benefits. Provides information about benefits covered, populations served, and the limitations, co-payments, and reimbursement policies that apply to Medicaid benefits for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. Search by state or for benefits by service (Select Practitioner Services, Dental Services). This database is a service of the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).
  
  
• State and Territorial Dental Public Health Activities. Contains descriptive summaries for oral health public health activities that states and territories have reported as successful within the context of their environment and resources. Contact information is given with the summaries. The collection is searchable by topic and state. This database is a product of the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD).
  
  
• Synopses of State and Territorial Dental Public Health Programs (Synopses). Displays characteristics of and programs conducted by state and territorial oral health programs, including water fluoridation programs, dental sealant programs, oral-health-education programs, and oral-health-screening programs. This information is useful in tracking progress toward the Healthy People 2010 oral health objectives. Synopses is a collaborative effort between CDC's Division of Oral Health and the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD).
  
  
• Also see OHRC's database of oral health projects funded by OHS and the National Public Health Training Center (PHTC) Network Distance Education Center.
  

  
  

Newsletters and Online Discussion Lists

• American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): Children's Oral Health Electronic Newsletter. This monthly newsletter provides information about funding opportunities, conferences, news, and resources related to infant, child, and adolescent oral health.
  
  
• American Association for Community Dental Programs (AACDP): The Bellwether: Leading Local Efforts to Improve the Nation's Oral Health. This newsletter, for those serving vulnerable populations at the community level, highlights innovative or promising programs and shares information about the association's activities.
  
  
• American Association of Public Health Dentistry (AAPHD): Communique. This newsletter presents news, conference and CE announcements, and information about recently published resources that focus on public health dentistry.
  
  
• American Dental Education Association (ADEA): Washington Update. Published monthly when Congress is in session, this electronic newsletter reports on federal issues and events of interest to the academic dental and research communities.
  
  
• Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD): Oral Health Matters. This newsletter reports on oral health programs, grants, meetings, and resources for public health professionals.
  
  
• Dental Public Health Discussion List. This online discussion list is open to anyone with an interest in dental public health. It is administered by Dr. Robert Weyant at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine.
  
  
• National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR): News from NIDCR. Published several times a year, this newsletter provides information from NIDCR and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) about oral health funding opportunities, training and career-development news, programmatic news, and meetings and events of interest to the research community.
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC): Electronic Lists and Newsletters. Presents several communication venues:
  
  Community Oral Health Programs Discussion List. This online discussion list is a forum for communication between local oral health directors and personnel. The list facilitates discussion about the operation of oral health programs and allows participants to explore potential solutions and share ideas.
  
  OHRC Announcements. This e-mail alert service announces new and updated OHRC resources on public oral health issues.
  
  Oral Health Alert: Focus on Head Start. This monthly newsletter provides information about Head Start initiatives and resources.
  
  
• National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA): NNOHA News. This quarterly newsletter presents news about meetings, resources, products, and success stories for and about oral health professionals who are caring for patients in migrant, homeless, and community health centers.
  
  
• Oral Health America: eNewsletter. This newsletter is published periodically and provides oral health news, legislative updates, and links to articles and reports.
  

  
  

Resources for Consumers

Find Care

• Academy of General Dentistry (AGD): Find an AGD Dentist. Search by name, city, state, zip code, or country.
  
  
• American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD): Find a Pediatric Dentist. Search by zip code.
  
  
• American Academy of Periodontology (AAP): Find a Periodontist. Search by city, state, zip code, area code, or country.
  
  
• American Association of Orthodontists (AAO): Orthodontist Locator. Search by name, address, city, state, zip code, or country.
  
  
• American Dental Association (ADA): Find a Dentist. Search by name, city, state, zip code, and area of specialty (e.g., pediatric dentistry).
  
  
• Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA): Find a Health Center. Search by address, city, state, or zip code to find a federally funded health center that provides free or low-cost care, including oral health care.
  
  
• National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR): Finding Low-Cost Dental Care. Suggests ways to find low-cost oral health care. Includes contact information for U.S. dental schools that have clinics where dental students can get experience while offering low-cost care.
  

  
  

Web Sites for Consumers

• Academy of General Dentistry (AGD): KnowYourTeeth. Presents articles, fact sheets, an "ask a dentist" forum, and a newsletter about oral health for infants, children, teens, and pregnant women. Also offers a tooth timeline for information about teeth and mouth changes and recommended care at every stage of life.
  
  
• American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD): Parent Resource Center. Gives answers to frequently asked questions, tips, and brochures about improving your child's oral health. Includes a special section for and about teens.
  
  
• American Academy of Pediatrics: Patient Education Online. Presents brochures in English and Spanish and several audio files about oral health care for infants and children. To access this collection, click on "O" under A to Z Index of Patient Handouts. Go to the section, Oral Health. Includes a brochure about ECC.
  
  
• American Dental Association (ADA): Public Oral Health Information. Gives news and information on a wide range of oral health topics affecting infants, children, teens, and pregnant women. Some information is available in Spanish. Includes online movies, animations, games, puzzles, and stories for children about taking care of teeth and gums.
  
  
• American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA): Oral Health Information. Presents guides to brushing and flossing, fact sheets about premature birth and child and teen oral health, posters about tobacco use and periodontal disease, and Spanish-language materials.
  
  
• California Dental Association (CDA): Patient Education Tools. Offers a set of fact sheets in English, Spanish, Hmong, Chinese, Russian, and Vietnamese. Topics include ECC, dental emergencies, fluoride, grinding of teeth, mouth guards, new moms, orthodontics, pregnancy, dental sealants, and wisdom teeth. Also see CDA's First Smiles.
  
  
• MedlinePlus: Child Dental Health. Links to information in English and Spanish about infant, child, and teen oral health.
  
  
• MouthPower. Presents information for children in English and Spanish about oral anatomy and the effects of foods, oral hygiene habits, and cigarette and spit tobacco use on oral health.
  
  
• National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR): Children's Oral Health. Offers materials in English and Spanish about preventing ECC, healthy snacking, dental sealants, and oral conditions in children with special health care needs.
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC): Bright Futures Toolbox for Children, Adolescents, and Families. Links to materials for children, teens, and parents about caring for teeth and mouths. Also links to non-English-language oral health materials for families.
  
  
• National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA): Patient Education Materials. Presents oral health fact sheets in English, Spanish, Russian, and French. Topics include pregnancy and caring for a baby's teeth.
  
  
• Many of the Web sites listed in the sections, Web Sites of State Organizations and Resources on Specific Aspects of Oral Health, contain resources for consumers.
  

  
  

Resources on Specific Aspects of Oral Health

Child Care and Head Start
Dental Sealants
Early Childhood Caries
Fluoride Varnish
K-12 Education
Pregnancy
School-Based Care
School Evaluation Mandates
Special Health Care Needs

Child Care and Head Start

• California Childcare Health Program (CCHP). Offers fact sheets, briefs, posters, and other resources to help child care professionals and families achieve healthy and safe practices in child care settings. Oral health topics include dental caries, tooth and mouth care, toothbrush care, limiting the consumption of foods high in sugar, and oral health for children with special health care needs. Many materials are available in Spanish. Also presents an oral health curriculum for health and child care professionals. CCHP is a program of the University of California, San Francisco School of Nursing.
  
  
• Head Start Dental Home Initiative. Presents information about this partnership at the national, regional, state, and local levels to develop a national network of dentists to link children enrolled in Head Start and Early Head Start with dental homes. This initiative is a collaborative effort between the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) and the Office of Head Start.
  
  
• Healthy Smiles through Child Care Health Consultation: A Distance Learning Course. Presents an online course for child care health consultants about infant and child oral health. Topics address tooth development, major oral diseases, prevention strategies, access to oral health care, techniques for oral health promotion, and oral health for children with special health care needs. Healthy Smiles is a project of the National Training Institute for Child Care Health Consultants (NTI).
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC): Head Start. Offers a collection of resources to share with those working to improve access to and enhance the quality of oral health services for infants, children, and pregnant women enrolled in Early Head Start and Head Start. Includes materials from a series of national, professional, regional, and state forums about improving oral health status in the Early Head Start and Head Start community and a compilation of answers to frequently asked questions from Head Start program staff. Also includes a database of oral health projects funded by OHS and Oral Health Alert: Focus on Head Start, a monthly newsletter about Head Start initiatives and resources. OHRC also has developed a collection of materials for the Head Start community; recent publications include
  
  Dental hygienists and Head Start: What you should know and how you can help. (2008). [Tip sheet].
  
  Dentists and Head Start: What you should know and how you can help. (2008). [Tip sheet].
  
  Head Start 101. (2008). [Presentation].
  
  Head Start oral health curricula: At-a-glance. (2008). [Matrix].
  
  Timeline of Head Start oral health activities. (2008).
  
  Also see Open wide: Oral health training for health professionals, which is appropriate for Early Head Start and Head Start professionals. For additional Head Start oral health information and resources, see OHRC's Head Start bibliography, its collection of non-English-language oral health materials, and a list of links to Head Start-related Web sites.
  
  
• Partners in Prevention: Getting a Head Start on Oral Health—An Infant/Toddler Oral Health Continuing Education Course. Presents a CE course for Head Start staff. Topics include prenatal care, pregnancy and oral health; oral pathology of the infant and young child; oral manifestation of systemic disease, tooth formation, eruption, and teething; nutritive and non-nutritive sucking; acquisition of the oral flora; oral hygiene and preventing early childhood caries; fluoride benefits; diet and nutrition; oral facial trauma and child abuse; simple rules for good oral health; and a summary of anticipatory guidance. Partners in Prevention was created by the New York University College of Dentistry and sponsored by The New York State Dental Foundation.
  
  
• Project Ready Smile: Children's Oral Health Initiative. Presents program information and materials for oral health professionals and early childhood education professionals for this initiative to improve the oral health of infants and children from birth to age 6 from families with low incomes residing in selected counties in Kansas and Missouri and enrolled in early childhood education programs. Services include oral health screenings, fluoride-varnish applications, and oral health education.
  
  
• South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Division of Oral Health: Early Childhood. Presents a resource guide, curricula, presentation materials, and other educational materials for child care professionals and early childhood educators to prevent oral diseases and oral injuries and to teach young children about their mouths and how to take care of their teeth.
  
  
• Del Grosso P, Brown A, Silva S, Henderson J, Tein N, Paulsell D. 2008. Strategies for promoting prevention and improving oral health care delivery in Head Start: Findings from the Oral Health Initiative Evaluation. Princeton, NJ: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. This report presents results from a 2-year evaluation of the OHS's Oral Health Initiative (OHI), a supplemental grant program to develop, implement, and disseminate best practice oral health models that meet the needs of the communities and population they serve. Also see the companion report, A guide to emerging strategies for promoting prevention and improving oral health care delivery in Head Start: Lessons from the the Oral Health Initiative Evaluation (2008).
  
  
• Minnesota Head Start Association, Minnesota Dental Association, Minnesota Dental Hygienists' Association, Pfeffer, M. 2008. Minnesota community collaborative practice Head Start oral health model: A strong start and guide for the future. Duluth, MN: Minnesota Head Start Association. This document describes the Community Collaborative Practice Head Start Oral Health Model in Minnesota, a plan to expand the role of allied oral health professionals in providing oral health services for Head Start children and to increase compliance with the federal Head Start program performance standards.
  
  
• National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education. 2008. Parent's checklist for good dental health practices in child care. Aurora, CO: National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education. This checklist encourages parents to look at the oral health practices their children are experiencing in child care and early education settings. It is also designed for use by early childhood and heath professionals in influencing the quality of oral practices in child care. Topics include foods, toothbrushing, preventing tooth decay, safety issues, and dental emergencies. The checklist is also available in Spanish.
  
  
• Office of Head Start (OHS). 2006. Program instruction in oral health, rev. ed. Washington, DC: Administration for Children and Families (ACF). These guidelines explain OHS's policies and expectations regarding grantee compliance with selected oral health requirements. The guidelines are also available in Spanish.
  
  
• Rosenbaum S. 2008. Medicaid portability in the context of oral health care for Head Start-enrolled children in migrant farmworker families. Washington, DC: George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services. This analysis presents an overview of Medicaid eligibility and enrollment and examines strategies for increasing enrollment and portability for children in Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) programs, using MSHS programs as a mechanism for identifying and enrolling eligible children. The analysis identifies options for resolving the financial barriers that impede access to oral health services among migrant children receiving Head Start services.
  
  
• Also see First Smiles. The section Resources for Consumers also contains materials that can be used in child care and Head Start settings.
  

  
  

Dental Sealants

• American Dental Association (ADA). Presents a list of materials for health professionals and a list of resources for consumers about dental sealants. Recent publications include
  
  Evidence-based clinical recommendations for the use of pit-and-fissure sealants. (2008). [Report]. An executive summary is also available.
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC): Dental Sealants. Presents a resource guide and fact sheet about dental sealants and how to promote their use in preventing dental caries. Also offers an online manual for individuals who wish to start a school-based dental sealant program. Also see OHRC's bibliography about dental sealants.
  
  
• Protecting Children's Teeth. Contains information and resources for families, teachers and students, and oral health professionals on protecting children's teeth with dental sealants. This resource was developed by the College of Dental Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina.
  
  
• Note: Many of the Web sites listed in the section, Web Sites of State Organizations, offer information about dental sealants. Also see the MCHB-Funded Projects Database (final reports). See CDA's fact sheet about dental sealants (available in several languages) and NIDCR's resources for consumers. In addition, the section School-Based Care presents information about several school-based dental sealant programs.
  

  
  

Early Childhood Caries

• American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD). Offers two policy statements about ECC: Policy on early childhood caries (ECC): Classifications, consequences, and preventive strategies, rev. ed (2008) and Early childhood caries (ECC): Unique challenges and treatment options, rev. ed (2008).
  
  
• American Academy of Pediatrics. Offers the brochure for parents, First steps to a healthy smile (2008) and a training module about oral health risk assessment and triage for infants and young children.
  
  
• American Dental Association (ADA). Presents a list of materials for health professionals about tooth decay and dental caries, including ECC. Also offers a list of materials about ECC for parents.
  
  
• Center to Address Disparities in Children's Oral Health (CAN DO Center). Describes its research programs to understand, prevent, and reduce oral health disparities among young children. CAN DO's primary focus is preventing ECC. CAN DO is located at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Dentistry.
  
  
• Dental Caries. Offers a training program about dental caries for primary care health professionals. Topics include the primary and secondary teeth, ECC, and the importance of screening infants and children. Screening demonstrations for infants and children under age 6 and for older children and adults are provided. The program is presented by the University of Michigan School of Dentistry and the Voices of Detroit Initiative. Also see the university's set of dental caries diagnosis, risk assessment, and management protocols.
  
  
• First Smiles. Provides education resources and training tools for oral health, medical, and early childhood education professionals, as well as materials for parents of young children, including those with special health care needs, on the prevention of ECC. Includes a resource guide for creating, implementing, and evaluating community-based oral health programs for young children in rural areas. Also presents a brochure for families, Healthy teeth begin at birth (2005) which is available in 10 languages. First Smiles was a joint effort by the California Dental Association (CDA) Foundation and the Dental Health Foundation that ended in 2008. View the initiative's First 5 California Oral Health Education and Training Project: Final evaluation report (2008).
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC): Early Childhood Caries. Offers a resource guide and fact sheet about the prevention of ECC. Also see OHRC's bibliography about ECC.
  
  
• Note: Several of the Web sites listed in the sections, Web Sites of State Organizations and Distance Learning Resources address ECC. Also see CDA's fact sheet about ECC (available in several languages), the California Childcare Health Program (CCHP), and Smiles for Ohio.
  

  

Fluoride Varnish

• American Dental Association (ADA). Presents Evidence-based clinical recommendations: Professionally applied topical fluoride (2006), a report on the use of professionally applied topical fluoride (gel, varnish, and foam) and the rationale for evidence-based clinical recommendations on professionally applied topical fluoride. An executive summary is available.
  
  
• Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD). Presents Fluoride varnish: An evidence-based approach (2007), a research brief to help professionals design and evaluate community-based programs that use fluoride varnish.
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC). Offers a bibliography about fluoride varnish.
  
  
• Koskela L. 2008. Georgia Oral Health Prevention Program. Fluoride varnish manual: Resources and information. Atlanta, GA: Georgia Department of Human Resources. This manual provides information for health professionals on the use and application of fluoride varnish in public oral health programs in Georgia.
  
  
• Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Oral Health Services. 2006. Smiles for Ohio fluoride varnish program for primary care providers. Columbus, OH: Ohio Department of Health. This training manual for health professionals provides information about how to assess the oral health of infants and young children at well-child examinations to identify those at risk for ECC. The manual also provides information about how to implement a program to apply fluoride varnish to the teeth of high-risk children.
  
  
• Also see CDC's Division of Oral Health and Smiles for Life: A National Oral Health Curriculum for Family Medicine. Several of the Web sites listed in the section, Web Sites of State Organizations offer information about fluoride varnish.
  

  
  

K-12 Education

• Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) Database. Presents information about journal articles, research reports, teaching guides, curricula, conference papers, and books covering all aspects of education-related issues. To identify resources on the topic, click on Advanced Search. Type "dental health" OR "oral health" in the Search Term(s) box. Go to the Publication Date field to select a date range. Click on the Search button to get your results. ERIC is sponsored by the Department of Education.
  
  
• Florida Dental Association. Presents two curricula to teach students about the importance of oral health care:
  
  Mouth Wise dental-health education: K-5 curriculum (2008). Contains five modules: Meet your mouth, Let's talk teeth, The plaque attack, Tips for terrific teeth, and A trip to the dentist's office.
  
  Mouth Wise dental-health education: Middle school curriculum. (2008). Contains four modules, each of which is targeted to a specific grade level: Nutrition and soda consumption (sixth grade), Use of mouth guards (seventh grade), Smokeless tobacco (seventh grade), and Oral piercing (eighth grade).
  
  
• KidsHealth in the Classroom. Offers guides for teaching students about oral health for students in preschool through grade 2, grades 6-8, and grades 9-12. The guide includes discussion questions, activities, and handouts. Enter teeth in the search box to get the guides and supporting materials. KidsHealth is a service of the Nemours Foundation.
  
  
• Smile Michigan: Classroom Resources. Provides teachers of students in preschool through high school with creative ideas for teaching about oral health. Smile Michigan is presented by the Michigan Dental Association.
  
  
• Smile Smarts! Oral Health Curriculum. Presents an oral health curriculum for students in preschool through grade 8 offering lesson plans, support materials, hands-on classroom demonstrations, student activity sheets, and suggestions for supplemental oral health activities. Smile Smarts! is an initiative of the American Dental Association (ADA). Also see ADA's resources for teachers for National Children's Dental Health Month (NCDHM).
  
  
• South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Division of Oral Health. Presents oral health supplemental curriculum guides that contain lessons to teach students about their mouth and encourage them to take care of their teeth. Curricula are available for preschool, kindergarten, second grade, seventh grade, and afterschool programs.
  
  
• Virginia Department of Health: Curriculum Resources for Schools. Presents the Saving Smiles Series curriculum to educate students about the impact of personal hygiene on oral and overall health. The curriculum includes lesson plans for school staff to use with elementary, middle, and high school students. Also offers activity sheets for students and an order form for educational materials for use in the classroom.
  
  
• Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Office of Oral Health. 2009. Children's dental health bulletin board. Baltimore, MD: Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. This set of 11 sheets is designed to hang on a bulletin board and covers the basics of oral health care.
  
  
• Note: The section, Resources for Consumers, also contains materials that can be used in the classroom.
  

  
  

Pregnancy

• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC): Perinatal. Presents a collection of resource materials about pregnancy and oral health. Also offers bibliographies about pregnancy and periodontal health for consumers and professionals. Recent publications include
  
  Access to oral health care during the perinatal period: A policy brief. (2008).
  
  Oral health care during pregnancy: A summary of practice guidelines. (2008). This publication summarizes the practice guidelines that accompany the New York State Department of Health’s CE activity, Oral health care during pregnancy and early childhood (2007).
  
  Research to policy and practice forum: Periodontal health and birth outcomes. Summary of a meeting of maternal, child, and oral health experts. (2007).
  
  Two healthy smiles: Tips to keep you and your baby healthy. (2008). [Tri-fold brochure]. [Fact sheet].
  
  
• Oral Health Care During Pregnancy and Early Childhood. Presents a CE activity for prenatal, oral health, and child health professionals that focuses on the importance of good oral health and the need for oral health care during pregnancy and early childhood, with the aim of bringing about changes in the health care delivery system and improving the overall standard of care for pregnant women and young children. Practice guidelines and other materials accompany the program, which is presented by the New York State Department of Health. Also see OHRC's summary of the practice guidelines.
  
  
• Also see Smiles for Life: A National Oral Health Curriculum for Family Medicine. Many of the Web sites listed in the sections, Web Sites of State Organizations and Resources for Consumers, also contain resources about pregnancy.
  

  
  

School-Based Care

• CDC's Division of Oral Health. Presents a resource for school-based dental sealant programs that describes dental sealants and the role of school-based programs and presents the scientific evidence to support program implementation.
  
  
• Center for Health and Health Care in Schools (CHHCS): School-Based Dental Health. Presents a collection of resources about school-based oral health services including background papers, clinical and management tools, papers on financing issues, model state and local oral health policies and program information, links to additional resources, and a bibliography.
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC). Offers a bibliography about school-based oral health programs and a resource guide about dental sealants that includes school-based dental sealant programs. Also presents
  
  Seal America: The Prevention Invention, 2nd ed. Provides practical guidance for individuals who wish to start a school-based dental sealant program and addresses program sustainability and issues related to referring students with unmet oral health needs to a dentist. Developed by Nancy Carter, with assistance from the American Association for Community Dental Programs (AACDP) and OHRC.
  
  
• Oral Health America (OHA). Offers program information about the National Sealant Alliance, which provides donated dental sealant material to school-based and school-linked programs throughout the United States and Smiles Across America, an oral-disease-prevention and health-promotion initiative linking corporate, government, and community support in advancing school-based or school-linked oral health programs for families without access to routine oral health care.
  
  
• Lapin B, Smith AJB. 2008. Dental care: The often neglected part of health care. New Haven, CT: School of the 21st Century, Yale University. This issue brief describes school-based strategies to promote oral health education and examples of successful oral health care programs in schools.
  
  
• Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Oral Health Services. 2008. Oral health screening in Ohio's schools: Training DVD, guidelines, and pocket guide for school nurses. Columbus, OH: Ohio Department of Health. These training materials were developed to help school nurses learn how to conduct school-based oral health screening.
  
  
• Also see ASTDD's Best Practice Approaches. Many of the resources listed in the section, Web Sites of State Organizations, offer information about state-supported, school-based oral health programs.
  

  
  

School Evaluation Mandates

• American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD). Offers the policy statement, Mandatory school-entrance oral health examinations, rev. ed. (2008).
  
  
• National Oral Health Policy Center. Presents the issue brief, State laws on dental "screening" for school-aged children. (2008).
  
  
• Also see the California Dental Association and the Iowa Department of Public Health for information and resources about school oral health evaluation mandates.
  

  
  

Special Health Care Needs

• American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD). Offers the guidelines, Management of dental patients with special health care needs, rev. ed. (2008) and the policy statement, Model dental benefits for infants, children, adolescents, and individuals with special health care needs (2008).
  
  
• Dental Education in Care of Persons with Disabilities (DECOD): Training Program. Offers a video lecture series and self-directed modules about the oral management of individuals with disabilities, including children and adolescents with special health care needs. DECOD is a program of the University of Washington School of Dentistry that treats individuals with severe disabilities and prepares dental professionals to meet these individuals' special oral health care needs.
  
  
• National Foundation of Dentistry for the Handicapped (NFDH). Offers information about its programs to provide oral health services to individuals with special health care needs and elderly citizens through oral health professionals who donate their services. NFDH is an affiliate of the American Dental Association (ADA) and state and local dental associations.
  
  
• National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR): Special Needs. Presents resources for health professionals and families about delivering oral health care to individuals with special health care needs. Also presents information and resources for health professionals and consumers about managing and preventing oral complications of systemic diseases (cancer treatment, developmental disabilities, diabetes mellitus, heart disease, and HIV and AIDS).
  
  
• National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC): Children with Special Health Care Needs. Presents resources about planning, developing, and implementing efforts to ensure that children and adolescents with special health care needs receive optimal oral health care. Resources include
  
  Oral health for children and adolescents with special health care needs: Challenges and opportunities. (2005). [Fact sheet].
  
  Oral health services for children and adolescents with special health care needs: Resource guide. (2005).
  
  Promoting the oral health of children with special health care needs: In support of the national agenda. (2006). This policy brief was produced in collaboration with the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD).
  
  Special Care: An Oral Health Professional's Guide to Serving Young Children with Special Health Care Needs. Presents a series of five self-study modules to provide oral health professionals with information to ensure that young children with special health care needs have access to health-promotion and disease-prevention services that address their unique oral health needs in a comprehensive, family-centered, and community-based manner.
  
  Strategies for improving the oral health system of care for children and adolescents with special health care needs. (2005). [Tip sheet].
  
  Also see OHRC's bibliography about oral health for children and adolescents with special health care needs.
  
  
• Pacific Center for Special Care. Presents information about its programs and efforts to improve access to oral health care for individuals with special health care needs, including people who have difficulty maintaining good oral health or accessing oral health services because of developmental, medical, physical, or social conditions. The center is an organization within the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry.
  
  
• Special Care Dentistry (SCD). Links to educational modules, a product guide, and other resources about the oral health care of individuals with special needs.
  
  
• Special Olympics Healthy Athletes. Describes this initiative to provide health screenings to athletes free of charge at Special Olympics competitions. Health screenings are offered in seven areas, one of which is dentistry (Special Smiles). Presents information for health professionals about volunteering in the program, and resources for health professionals that include training manuals, handbooks, forms, and patient-education materials. Special Olympics is an international organization dedicated to empowering individuals with intellectual disabilities to become physically fit, productive, and respected members of society through sports training and competition.
  
  
• Also see ASTDD's Best Practice Approaches, California Childcare Health Program (CCHP), Healthy Smiles through Child Care Health Consultation, and First Smiles.
  

  
  

Authors: Susan Brune Lorenzo, M.L.S., Maternal and Child Health Library; Katrina Holt, M.P.H., M.S., R.D., OHRC.
Contributors: Jolene Bertness, M.Ed., OHRC; Tracy Lopez, M.S.L.S., Maternal and Child Health Library.
Reviewers: Elizabeth Lowe, M.P.H., R.D.H., OHRC; Sarah Kolo, OHRC.