What is this study about?Â
Dental service provision in the care home sector is poor, with little emphasis on prevention. Emerging evidence suggests that the use of Dental Care Professionals (dental therapists and dental nurses) as an alternative to dentists has the potential to improve preventive advice, the provision of care and access to services within care homes. However, robust empirical evidence from defnitive trials on how to successfully implement and sustain these interventions within care homes is currently lacking. The aim of the study is to determine whether Dental Care Professionals could reduce plaque levels of dentate older adults (65+years) residing in care homes.
The aim of this study is to undertake a cluster-randomised controlled trial to determine whether Dental Care Professionals (DCPs) could reduce plaque levels (improve the oral cleanliness) of dentate older adults (65 years and over) residing in care-homes and other dependent settings over a six-month period, when compared to ‘treatment as usual’ (commonly a reactive and ad hoc service provided by dentists). In addition, we aim to determine whether this effect is sustainable over a further six-month follow-up period.
Contact
 Professor Paul Brocklehurst p.brocklehurst@bangor.ac.uk
Sponsor
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Funder
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Services and Delivery Research Programme