Pilot Venture Integrates Oral Well being in Hospitals

Dental hygienists, who’ve expanded follow permits permitting them to follow with out a dentist current, are bettering the lives of sufferers at Samaritan hospital, one tooth at a time.

Since 2020, a hygienist with Capitol Dental has been working on the Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital alongside medical doctors, nurses and different clinicians to evaluate and deal with sufferers, make referrals and supply oral well being training.

Recognizing how oral well being impacts total wellness, InterCommunity Health Network Coordinated Care Organization Delivery System Transformation committee funded a hygienist from Capitol Dental to work on the hospital and supply oral well being companies, training and affected person navigation.

With overwhelming optimistic outcomes, together with creating a course of to combine oral well being companies in hospitals, the pilot stands as a mannequin for others to copy.

“To our information, the collaboration with Samaritan was the primary and is the one one in Oregon to supply dental hygiene companies in a hospital setting,” stated Linda Mann, director of Capitol Dental. “It could be improbable to have expanded follow dental hygienists working in each hospital.”

Earlier than, hospital sufferers didn’t at all times obtain oral well being care, and lots of went with out dental take care of years. Now, everybody from new mothers within the labor and supply division, to individuals receiving remedy for most cancers and diabetes to sufferers intubated with critical situations are benefiting.

Moreover, when a hygienist is on the market, they’ll help with triaging sufferers who current with dental points within the emergency division, offering assessments and referrals for observe‑up care. “Having an expanded follow dental hygienist has been an enormous profit for the hospital and sufferers,” stated Wendie Wunderwald vice chairman of Affected person Care Providers at Samaritan Lebanon Group Hospital.

The hygienist additionally has educated hospital employees, who’re primarily targeted on the medical elements of care. Alexa Blake is a speech language pathologist with Samaritan and labored alongside the hygienist. Entry to dental care may be restrictive in rural communities, as a consequence of transportation, funds or problem discovering a dentist.

“Having a hygienist on‑web site makes it so handy,” Blake stated. The collaboration between bodily and oral well being isn’t a brand new concept in rural Linn County. The concept started with an association between Capitol Dental and Sweet Home Family Medicine, the place an expanded follow dental hygienist has labored alongside clinicians for greater than seven years.

Samaritan Lebanon Group Hospital CEO Marty Cahill was wanting to turn out to be the primary to combine oral well being in a hospital setting and is happy to share the outcomes with others. IHN‑CCO and Capitol Dental continued funding for this system in Lebanon. And this system has been replicated by Capitol Dental at Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital in Lincoln Metropolis and by Advantage Dental at Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital in Newport. The coastal hospital applications are funded via a federal grant.

“This system is rising in ways in which we didn’t anticipate,” Cahill stated. “It’s been very optimistic.”