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Carolina Family Health Centers, Inc. has provided medical and dental care for patients in three North Carolina counties for years. But during that time, the Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) was having trouble accessing a specific part of the population that needed oral health care — children. 

By Andrea Clark, MS, Director, Health Care Economics, and Renee Clark, Care Coordination & Interoperability ManagerThe health care system in the United States is unique in many often-cited ways. It does not provide universal coverage, mixes publicly and privately funded insurances, and spends more on care per person than any other wealthy country.

A Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in southern California noticed an alarming statistic last year: Only about 22% of their pediatric medical patients were also going to their dental department. “We really wanted to promote the one-stop-shop, under-one-roof, collaborative care with the medical providers and really dig into why they weren’t seeking dental care at all or . . . were going elsewhere,” says Rebecca Cornille, DDS, the chief dental officer at Vista Community Clinic (VCC). 

Katanta Simwanza, DDS, knows what it’s like to not have access to oral health care. “Growing up, I was surrounded by a high prevalence of dental diseases within my community where oral health services were scarce,” Simwanza says. “I, and many other children and elders alike, personally experienced the pain of dental abscesses and oral health diseases.” These experiences growing up in Tanzania pointed him toward pursuing a career in health — specifically oral health. 

Early in his career, Bill Milner, DDS, MPH, realized that special populations — especially people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and the elderly — are often left behind when it comes to accessing oral health care. “There has been a gap in services in dentistry that we knew back in the 1980s had to be filled,” says Milner. “Dentistry had no answer for folks that we now serve. We thought, ‘Why not provide the same quality care to those with intellectual and developmental disabilities or the elderly, who may not be able to afford it?’” 

As part of his role to advance the integration of oral health and overall health, CareQuest Institute Chief Health Equity Officer Kaz Rafia, DDS, MBA, MPH, is always trying to find exemplars. He seeks models and individuals that are focused on the community and on finding innovative ways to improve the system.

Oral health is often viewed in isolation, yet its impact extends far beyond the mouth. Oral health can hurt the heart.Emerging research has established a concerning link between oral health and heart issues. Gum disease, for example, can trigger cardiovascular problems and increase the risk of having a heart attack. Tooth decay and other oral infections in childhood can contribute to atherosclerosis (clogged arteries) in adulthood.

Amanpreet Kaur first encountered the concept of health literacy — defined as the ability to find, understand, and use information and services to inform health-related decisions and actions — as a young college graduate. Although she had never heard the term before, it instantly made sense to her.

Early childhood caries remains the most common, preventable infectious disease among children in the United States. Preventing them is not always easy, though.

It’s no secret that many people confront chronic illnesses, from heart disease to dementia, as they get older. We often hear about the importance of regular exercise and well-balanced diets to help us stave off these illnesses and stay healthy as we enter our seventh, eighth, and ninth decades.