GRANT00168

This program’s focus on collaboration between medical and dental clinicians will increase and facilitate access to oral health care for children by expanding the safety net and engage medical providers to assist with education and preventive services for children under five years old. Pennsylvania has been charged by CMS with increasing the number of children receiving oral health care by 15% over the next 5 years. Head Start is just beginning to work on access to oral health care. Other early childhood educators are only minimally involved (tooth brushing, etc.). Sharing items available in both the medical and the dental communities across the state through a collaborative that could act as “clearinghouse and disseminator” would be a significant step toward medical/dental collaboration and improving oral health literacy across the population. Oral health literacy materials are beginning to be developed cross-culturally in Pennsylvania.