Providing Long Term Dental Care For Adults In American Nursing Homes
Nursing home dental care can be provided by both dental health care providers and non-dental health care providers such as direct care staff in the nursing homesof California. Good dental health promotes quality of life and overall health. Prevention of plaque bacteria and other risk factors can protect the mouth from damage.
What direct care staff can do
Direct care staff in nursing homes can do a lot of things such as identifying ways of controlling plaque in older adults that are cognitively impaired and functionally dependent. Direct care staff also identify visible dental issues that should be reported to healthcare providers who might refer the patient to a dentist.
The importance of oral care
Oral care helps in the prevention of dental disease. Dental health is very important because mouth problems and dental diseases are more common in the homebound population and nursing homes. Nursing home dental CA can also help dentists identify other conditions that the patient might be developing and cure them early before they become major issues.
The mouth can show the health of the patient
The mouth is referred to as the mirror of disease and health because you can find signs of systemic disease, nutritional deficiencies and microbial infections by examining the mouth.
Benefits of dental health to the well-being of a person
Poor dental health can worsen other problems such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, stroke, pneumonia and malnutrition. Mouth infections can lead to infections in other parts of the body. Older patients are likely to have compromised medical health so they are at a higher risk for infections. Good dental health is essential and contributes to keeping the elderly as healthy and possible.
Consequences of poor oral health
Without the right nursing home dental care, residents can have a decreased social interaction, poor self-esteem, problems with sleeping, problems with eating, mouth pain and problems with speech.
