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Volume3 Issue6
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S
upporting
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ractice
children recentlymoved toCanada. If thosebornor raised
inCanadaexhibitmoredisease, thiswould reflect theneed
for preventionand treatment programs that target such
childrenas earlyaspossible (e.g., school-basedoral health
programs).
Variations inOralHealthStatus byLocation
Childrenof newcomers living indifferent partsof
thenewcountrymayexhibit different oral health
characteristics.
3,4
Hence, ageneral policymaynot be
applicable toall newcomer children inall regions.
LanguageLiteracy
Newcomer childrenare less likely to receive routineor
preventivedental care.
29
Languagebarriershavebeen
consistentlyassociatedwith lessuseof dental care
29
and
issuesof communicationwithhealthcareproviders.
34
General educationprograms to improve language literacy
(inoneof theofficial languages) aswell asmore specific
programs to improveoral health literacycouldovercome
cultural beliefs andpractices that areharmful to theoral
healthof childrenandhelp increase theuseof dental
services.
Awareness of the Importance ofOralHealth
Althoughdental insurance is an important determinant
of theuseof dental care services, newcomer childrenuse
dental care less, regardlessof their insurance status.
18
This
maybe related tonewcomer children relyingmainlyon
publicly fundeddental programs,wherepractitioner
reimbursement rates are relatively low.
22
Inaddition, the
requiredco-paymentsmaybeafinancial burden.
It is essential to realize that lessuseof dental servicesmaybe
a result of lackof parental understandingof howpreventive
services and routine regular dental visits canbeeffective in
improving theoral healthof their children.
ComprehensiveAccessibleDentalCare
Newcomer childrenareat higher riskof dental caries
comparedwithnon-newcomer children. Theyarealsomore
likely to live inpovertyor come from low-incomehouseholds
where thecost of dental care is aburden.
24
Providing free (or
perhaps affordable) accessibleandcomprehensivedental
caremaybe themost efficientway toeliminatecaries in
newcomer childrenwhoare inurgent needof dental care.
42
Conclusion
Childrenof newcomers areassociatedwithworseoral health
outcomes, including lower utilization rates, higher dental
status scores andhigher prevalenceof caries compared
with their non-newcomer counterparts. Barriers that playa
role includecost of regular dental care, insufficient dental
insurancecoverage, communicatingwithdental care
providersbecauseof languagebarriers andparental beliefs
andpractices that put thesechildrenat ahigher riskof
dental diseases.
18,26,36,37
The increase indisparitiesbetween
newcomer andnon-newcomer childrencanbe reduced
through:
implementationofmoreeffectivepreschool and school-
basedoral healthprograms for youngchildren
improvingnewcomer parents’ literacy in theofficial
language(s)
educatingnewcomer parents regardinggoodoral health
practices
providingaffordable (ideally free) comprehensivedental
care (themost efficientway toeliminatecaries inchildren
whoare inurgent needof care)
Thedental profession inCanadacancontribute to
improving theoral healthof newcomers anddisadvantaged
populationsby treatingpatients coveredunder publicly
fundeddental programs and supporting theworkof
organizations seeking toexpandand improve these
programsbyadvocatingappropriateoral healthpolicies.
a
References
Complete listofreferencesavailableat
Regardless of their birthplace,many studies have shown that
children of newcomers haveworse oral health than their
non-newcomer counterparts.
