19
Volume1 Issue2
|
N
ews and
E
vents
UniversityofManitobaHolds
ORAL-SYSTEMICHEALTHDAY
RenéeBarclay
Ms. Barclay isa
medicalwriter-
editor, division
of continuing
professional
development,
Universityof
Manitoba,
facultiesof
dentistry&
medicine.
This article
was supported
in part through
an unrestricted
educational grant
from Johnson&
Johnson Inc.
An innovative interprofessionaleducationdayat the
University of Manitoba recently brought together
more than 200 Manitoba-based dentists, dental
hygienists, physicians, nurses andother non-dental
health care providers (HCPs), driving home the
message thatoral health ispartof overall health.
Non-dental HCPs learned how to detect rampant
caries inchildrenandoralandoropharyngealcancer
inadultsat the inauguralOral-SystemicHealthDay.
The full-day event was hosted by the faculties of
medicineanddentistryonFebruary7, 2014, aspart
of an innovative curriculum entitled
Oral-Systemic
HealthEducation forNon-dentalHealthcareProviders
.
In addition to the onsite participants, a significant
number of people also participated via Manitoba
Telehealth.
“The fact that the medical
and non-dental health
community has embraced
this Oral-Systemic Health
Day shows how far the
concept of patient co-
management has come,”
said Dr. Anthony Iacopino,
deanof the facultyofdentistry.
“We are finally reconnecting the
mouth to the rest of the body and
recognizing
their
bi-directional
influence,” Dr. Iacopino said. “An
accumulating body of evidence
infers that individuals who receive
health care within a coordinated
and
comprehensive
approach
across multiple disciplines do better,
especially older persons, children and
those within high-risk categories. A
primeexampleof this revolvesaround
the relationship between oral and
general health.”
Themorning of Oral-Systemic HealthDay featured
presentations by dental experts, Dr. Susan Müller
of Emory University andDr. Travis Nelson from the
University of Washington. Course participants later
engaged in facilitated round-table discussions
where they considered simulated case studies
and discussed how health and human services
professionals can better work together to improve
patientoutcomes.
Anoptionalhands-onsessionintheafternoontaught
non-dental HCPs how to build simple screening
techniques into routine doctor-patient visits.
Participants learned how to distinguish between
oral leukoplakia and oral lichen planus, including
distinct signs and symptoms of oropharyngeal
cancer that non-dental HCPs may not be familiar
with. “We are at the beginning of an epidemic,”
Dr. Müller said of oropharyngeal cancer. “The goal
for youasahealthcareprovider is to identifycancer
at averyearly stage.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Nelson explained that preventive
maintenance of dental caries in young children
hinges on routine visits with pediatricians and
primary care physicians. “Patients come to see
dentists at three years of age, which may be too
late,” he said. “Who is seeing the kids? Youguys are.
Doctors see kids 10 timesbeforeage three.”During
his portion of the workshop, Dr. Nelson showed
participantshow to look forwhite spot lesionsnear
the gum line, and offered practical positioning
techniques to facilitate screeningyoungchildren.
“Making the connections between themouth and
the rest of the body is to recognize that they are
truly extensively integrated,” saidDr. BruceMartin, ,
associate dean, students, faculty of medicine, who
was also a speaker at the event. “Oral-Systemic
HealthDaygaveusanopportunity to learn, tomeet
each other, to build connections with each other,
and to improve thehealthofourpatients. It isabout
the integrationofourhealthsystemsand thehealth
of our communities.”
a
Readmoreat
Innovative oral health curriculumprovides thebackdrop for interprofessional learning
Oral-SystemicHealth
Dayparticipantsput
theirnewknowledge into
practiceduring theoptional
hands-onworkshop.
