Making Oral Hygiene a Priority for Long-term Care Residents
Author: Julie-Ann Jaworski
Publisher:
Published: 2015
Total Pages: 0
ISBN-13:
DOWNLOAD EBOOKAs evidenced by several studies, oral hygiene care is greatly lacking for residents in long-term care settings. Poor oral hygiene leads to poor oral health, which is directly linked to overall health and well-being. Residents in long-term care settings who experience poor oral health are at a greater risk for experiencing respiratory illnesses, systemic infections, uncontrollable glucose levels, cardiovascular disease and strokes. Poor oral health may also contribute to poor nutrition due to difficulty chewing and swallowing, as well as a decrease in self-esteem. Researchers have concluded that barriers to proper oral hygiene care include: staff's lack of knowledge and technique pertaining to oral hygiene care and oral health, staff's negative perception about oral hygiene care, lack of resident cooperation, lack of time to complete proper oral care and lack of readily available supplies. A thorough literary research was completed to support the suggested implementations. It has been shown that oral care focused education and training, such as an oral health program, improves staff perception and technique in completing oral care. Implementing oral hygiene and oral health education and training programs, establishing guidelines and routines for the provision of oral hygiene care, designating staff for the provision of oral hygiene care, and the use of an oral hygiene cart greatly improved the quality of care and the oral health status of residents in long-term care settings. These implementations not only improved the oral health of the residents, but also improved their overall well-being, resulting in an improvement to their quality of life.
