IADR Abstract Archives
Māori Mental Health Patients, Oral Health and Quality of Life
Objectives: Māori are the indigenous people of Aotearoa/New Zealand and do not enjoy the same oral health status as the majority New Zealand European population. Tangata whaiora (Māori mental health patients) have substantial unmet dental treatment needs.
Objective: To investigate the impact of comprehensive oral health care on the oral-health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of a sample of community-based Māori mental health patients.
Methods: Experimental methods: Tangata whaiora were recruited by a psychiatrist through Community Mental Health Bay of Plenty District Health Board Needs Assessment and Co-ordination Service and Te Puna Hauora Ki Uta Ki Tai in Tauranga; they identified as Māori and were currently stable in a community setting. They were interviewed using the Oral Health Impact Profile short form (OHIP-14) before and after a complete oral rehabilitation. Ethics Committee approval was obtained from the Northern Y Ethics Committee based in Hamilton.
Results: Results: 32 participants undertook the first OHIP-14 interview prior to their dental treatment. This revealed that 72% of the sample had one or more impacts in any of the 7 OHIP-14 domains (functional limitation, physical pain, psychological discomfort, physical disability, psychological disability, social disability and handicap).
Some 17 participants (53%) completed the second OHIP-14 interview after a full course of dental treatment. The mean OHIP-14 score fell from 22.6 (sd, 15.6) to 9.5 (sd, 11.0), with an effect size of 0.8 representing a large improvement. This large effect size represents a considerable improvement in oral-health-related quality of life among the followed-up participants.
Conclusions: Conclusion: The study demonstrated the positive impact of a restored dentition on the participants’ quality of life as indicated by the pre- and post- Oral Health Impact Profile data. These pilot study data suggest that providing comprehensive dental care to tangata whaiora improves their OHRQoL considerably.
Objective: To investigate the impact of comprehensive oral health care on the oral-health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of a sample of community-based Māori mental health patients.
Methods: Experimental methods: Tangata whaiora were recruited by a psychiatrist through Community Mental Health Bay of Plenty District Health Board Needs Assessment and Co-ordination Service and Te Puna Hauora Ki Uta Ki Tai in Tauranga; they identified as Māori and were currently stable in a community setting. They were interviewed using the Oral Health Impact Profile short form (OHIP-14) before and after a complete oral rehabilitation. Ethics Committee approval was obtained from the Northern Y Ethics Committee based in Hamilton.
Results: Results: 32 participants undertook the first OHIP-14 interview prior to their dental treatment. This revealed that 72% of the sample had one or more impacts in any of the 7 OHIP-14 domains (functional limitation, physical pain, psychological discomfort, physical disability, psychological disability, social disability and handicap).
Some 17 participants (53%) completed the second OHIP-14 interview after a full course of dental treatment. The mean OHIP-14 score fell from 22.6 (sd, 15.6) to 9.5 (sd, 11.0), with an effect size of 0.8 representing a large improvement. This large effect size represents a considerable improvement in oral-health-related quality of life among the followed-up participants.
Conclusions: Conclusion: The study demonstrated the positive impact of a restored dentition on the participants’ quality of life as indicated by the pre- and post- Oral Health Impact Profile data. These pilot study data suggest that providing comprehensive dental care to tangata whaiora improves their OHRQoL considerably.