Addressing Oral Health Care Needs of Homebound Elderly in Northern Manhattan
Principal Investigator
Kavita Ahluwalia
kpa8@columbia.edu
Project Identifier
Effectiveness of Population-Based Interventions to Promote Oral Health—SIP 1-04
Status: Active
Columbia University: Harlem Health Promotion Center
Topics:
Aging & Elderly Health | Oral Health
This project is testing whether the Activities of Daily Living (ADL) tool, widely used by home care workers to assess health care support and services needed by patients, can be expanded to address the oral health care needs of homebound elderly persons (average age 78). A profile of oral care activities and needs is being distributed to 24 home health care nurses who serve 422 mainly African American and Hispanic clients in Northern Manhattan (New York City). The researchers will compare the number of oral care service recommendations made before and after the intervention, and compare the nurses’ daily care plans against patient-specific care plans developed by a dentist. The nurses’ perceived tool utility and feasibility will be assessed through focus groups. Incorporating oral care into the ADL could emphasize to nurses and their caregivers the importance of oral health to general health and well-being, and could result in improved delivery of daily oral care services for the elderly.
- Page last reviewed: February 25, 2008
- Page last updated: February 25, 2008
- Content source: Division of Adult and Community Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
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