Boston Oral Health Improvement Plan

About the Oral Health Improvement Plan

Boston has many oral health resources including three medical and dental schools, a dental hygiene school, several foundations, and community centers. Despite these resources, there are critical oral health disparities. To close the gap, the Boston Public Health Commission’s Office of Oral Health aims to develop a comprehensive and coordinated plan of action to address the gap and improve the oral health of its residents.

The activities of the Oral Health Improvement Plan include: §    Implementation of an oral health surveillance system §    Creation of a city-based oral health coalition §    Development of a “Burden of Oral Disease” report §    Development of a City of Boston Oral Health Improvement Plan §    Expansion of partnerships and securing funding and support §    Implementation of City of Boston Oral Health Improvement Workplan

Boston Oral Health Improvement Coalition

The Boston Oral Health Improvement Coalition is a collaborative of internal and external partners, programs and providers including community leaders and organizations, dental professionals, health advocates, schools and policy makers focused on addressing oral health disparities by advancing a citywide workplan to promote oral health, prevent disease and close gaps in service for underserved populations.  Coalition Goals: § Develop a comprehensive Oral Health Work Plan for the city § Select appropriate strategies for target population § Identify and set priorities for work plan implementation You too can be part of this team, become a member today! Fill out the interest form.

Boston Oral Health Improvement Plan

Working with the Boston Oral Health Improvement Coalition, we have developed the Boston Oral Health Improvement Plan. The goal of the Boston Oral Health Improvement Plan is to improve the oral health of Boston residents and prevent oral health disease by:  §    Increasing knowledge and promoting the importance of the link between oral     health and overall health/well being; §    Reducing disparities and inequities in dental disease by income, race,     ethnicity, age, and public housing status;        §    Changing social norms, expectations and beliefs around oral health by     mobilizing communities and residents for action;  §    Identifying and supporting methods to increase a racially and ethnically     diverse dental workforce.  These goals will be met by addressing seven cross-cutting areas:               Read the full version of the Oral Health Improvement Workplan

Resources and Links

§   CDC Infrastructure Development Tools  §   A Guide for Developing and Enhancing Community Oral Health Programs §   American Association for Community Dental Programs