Your Grandma probably told you to look after your teeth and they will look after you? and she’s right of course, however it seems that not a lot of looking after our grannies teeth is going on and it’s time this is improved.
In our opinion Heath and Social Care Professionals do a brilliant job caring for the people they support however Public Health England’s research in north-west England reported that 57% of residential care home managers said that they did not have an oral care policy, and one in 10 said that an oral health assessment was not undertaken at the start of care provision.
We predict that Oral Health will soon be high on the radar for the Care Quality Commission so now is the time to make the necessary plans such as training your teams.
Why Oral Health Care Training?
Despite being largely preventable, oral diseases are amongst the most common non-communicable diseases in the UK. Conditions such as:
- aspiration pneumonia, the fourth overall leading cause of death in hospitals
- diabetes, stroke, heart disease, lung disease and dementia, numerous studies have shown links between poor oral health and these health conditions
- dental pain and infection impair cognitive function which may already be reduced in adults with a learning disability or elderly people, especially those who have dementia
Effective mouth care will help to reduce the number of bacteria retained in the mouth and studies have shown a decrease in the incidence of hospital and care home acquired pneumonias as a result. Knowing how to support those with more complex needs requires professional training.
The benefits from good oral healthcare include being able to:
- Eat comfortably and without pain
- Speak and socialise with confidence
- Take medication with ease
- Prevent increase in dental diseases
Essential 6 provides Oral Healthcare Training across the UK and from our offices in Torquay, Devon. Want to know more? then take a look at our course overview here and make contact.
