Oral Health Education Case Study Essay Example

teeth at least once a day (including never). On average, visible plaque was found on over half the teeth of dentate adults who reported cleaning their teeth less than once a day compared with less than a third of those who reported cleaning their teeth at least twice a day or more.

Fifty four per cent of dentate adults had some periodontal pocketing of 4mm or more and 5% had deep pocketing (of 6mm or more) 43% had some loss of attachment off 4mm or more and 8% had loss of attachment of 6mm or more. The prevalence of pocketing and loss of attachment increased with age. For example, the proportion of dentate adults with some loss of attachments increased from 14% among those aged 16 to 24 years of age to 85% of those aged 65 and over. (see evidence in appendix 5) Aims and objectives Aim

During the sessions the patient will increase their knowledge of effective tooth brushing, improve their ability to clean their teeth effectively, gain a greater understanding of gum disease and know how to floss teeth effectively. ( see lesson plans appendix 4 ) Objectives At the end of the sessions the patient will be able to: 1- Demonstrate a good brushing technique. 2- Describe the causes of gum disease. 3- Demonstrate a good flossing technique Methodology Prior knowledge of the patient, skills and attitude

Patient was a smoker although she had now reduced the intake from 70 per week to around 21 cigarettes per week, from previous smoking cessation advice. The patient was keen to give up smoking has her daughter in law was due

to give birth to her first grandchild in the next few months and was unhappy with the idea of passive smoking to the child and also the cost of smoking would help her put her money to better use and also to aid her asthma and bronchitis. The patient was brushing twice a day already using a scrub technique, however she had bleeding on brushing and was not brushing all areas of her mouth. ( see appendix 1 of perio chart)

The patient was keen to get her oral hygiene up to a good standard and prevent any more bleeding. The patient had admitted to in the past only brushing once per day and not for the required time. Teaching methods The teaching methods I used were: Demonstration via model and mirror. I used this method as I thought the patient would be more likely to remember what I had shown her, she would be able to see clearly and she could repeat what I had shown her on the model, I would also be able to see better when the patient repeated the demonstration and would be able to see if she made any errors and could help her put these right.

Talk - I thought this method would help the patient understand better the process and the causes of periodontal disease ( I talked to the patient when showing her a poster ) She would also be able to ask questions on the matter so I could see if she fully understood what I was trying to teach her. I hoped she would also have clear idea / image in her

mind from me talking through the posters as to what would happen to her if she did not follow my advice. Visual aids / resources

All sessions took place in surgery four of the practice, which is the therapists room, as this room was fully equipped for all oral health education, with models, posters and leaflets. (see appendix 6 room plan ) Full mouth model: In order to show the patient a good and efficient brushing technique I thought using a full mouth model would be a good way to show the patient how to achieve this. Using the model the patient could see as I demonstrated the technique to her, this way she could see this more clearly than if demonstrated in the mouth.

I thought this would be a good way to explain to her, as I could explain as I demonstrated this to her. I thought that the patient would remember this more as she was able to demonstrate what brushing technique I had shown her, including how to brush in awkward areas.

Floss: To demonstrate the correct use of floss I asked the patient to hold a mirror as it was demonstrated. I thought this was easier to do than on model as it was true to life and showed the purpose of its use , and how it removes plaque subgingivally, the patient could see this effectively. I could also see if the patient was doing this correctly.

Posters: I described the causes of gum disease to the patient by using a poster on anatomy of teeth, situated on the surgery notice bored, another poster also showed

the stages of gum disease. As one of the posters showed a large image of the tooth’s structure I was able to explain fully to the patient how the presence of plaque bacteria had gradually destroyed the periodontal membrane and the bone supporting the teeth. Showing the patient the images of the final stages of gum disease, I thought would encourage he patient to preserver / continue with the treatment. The images would show her the final stage would be tooth loss and that if she continued with what I had advised, although bone loss had occurred the techniques I had demonstrated to her / advised her to do would stop the condition from getting any worse. Leaflet: I gave the patient gum disease leaflet so she could take it away and read it at her leisure and in case she forgot any information I had given her. The leaflet was easy to read and understand. The SMOG reading age of the leaflet was 13.

Session one : For session one I demonstrated the correct brushing technique to the patient, I then observed the patient demonstrating a sufficient brushing technique, so I could check that she was doing this correctly and not missing any areas and also to check she was happy and comfortable and happy using the technique. Session two : For session two the patient answered questions on the causes of gum disease, I asked her questions so I knew she had a full understanding of the causes of gum disease and also that she knew herself / and I thought she would be more inclined to remember the causes .