Integrating pediatric oral health into primary care: A public health strategy to combat oral diseases in children across the United States

Abstract

This paper examines the importance of integrating pediatric oral health into primary care as a strategic approach to addressing these disparities and improving oral health outcomes for all children in the United States. It explores the current state of pediatric oral health, highlighting existing disparities and barriers to access to care. It discusses the potential benefits of integration, including increased access to care, early intervention, improved continuity of care, and enhanced patient outcomes. It reviews successful integration models and strategies for overcoming challenges. By prioritizing pediatric oral health within primary care and implementing evidence-based integration strategies by examining the prevailing landscape of pediatric oral health, including extant disparities and access barriers, it underscores the urgency of holistic intervention. It elucidates the multifaceted advantages of integration, encompassing augmented access to care, timely intervention, bolstered continuity of care, and amplified patient outcomes. These models underscore the potency of collective action, fostering seamless communication, fortified care coordination, and bespoke oral health services catering to diverse pediatric needs. Moreover, it delves into the intricacies of overcoming entrenched challenges, including reimbursement intricacies, workforce scarcities, and resource limitations. By foregrounding pediatric oral health within the primary care milieu and propelling evidence-based integration strategies, transformative strides toward eradicating oral diseases in children are envisaged. It posits that by cultivating a paradigm wherein pediatric oral health is seamlessly interwoven into primary care, a future characterized by equitable oral health outcomes and universal well-being beckons.