Training strategies for oral health promotion through school nurses and health visitors in the UK

Abstract

The 1996/7 Department of Health National Oral Health Promotion programme invited Health Authorities to apply for projects to train health visitors and school nurses. The aim of this study was to explore the Oral Health Promotion Strategies outlined in the successful bids. All the applications were reviewed by two examiners (CM, DM). The Department of Health received a total of 118 bids, and provided funding for 93 (79%). This involved training over 12,718 primary health care workers. The majority of proposals aimed to directly train health visitors and school nurses using the booklet The Scientific Basis of Dental Health Education to update their oral health knowledge.Recognised target groups were lower socio-economic groups, pre-school children and minority ethnic communities. Seventy-four (80%) bids aimed to carry out the training using existing health authority personnel Fifteen bids sought to train ‘trainers’ to cascade the training process. The proposed programmes included: lectures, seminars, workshops, and the development of health education resources. Desired outcomes were not always stated but included improving oral health, increasing dental registration, and fostering a multidisciplinary approach to oral health care delivery. Evaluation procedures included pre and post training questionnaires and interviews, monitoring dental registration levels, and observing trainees' work practice. The key objectives of the Oral Health Promotion Training common to most successful bids were to increase utilisation of dental services and to foster a multisectoral approach to oral health.