Stakeholder Engagement and Multi-Risk Assessment in Dental Care Settings

Objectives: Unhealthy behaviors (smoking, drinking, poor diet, and unsafe sexual practices) are the largest contributors to the burden of chronic conditions, yet are effectively changed with health provider counseling. Multi-risk assessments (MRAs) are the first step in identifying risks, creating tailored care plans, counseling, and ensuring patients receive appropriate referrals. The dentist’s office is an important setting for conducting MRAs for oral and physical health risks, thereby increasing opportunities for early detection of and intervention for risk behaviors. Determine feasibility of offering comprehensive MRAs in dental settings: (1) Describe dentists’ and hygienists’ willingness to conduct MRAs, provide counseling, and make referrals for health risk behaviors and describe the factors that influence these attitudes. (2) Describe patients’ attitudes toward completing MRAs in dental practices. Methods: The Dental Practitioner Survey was offered to 870 private dental practitioners, Dentists (D) and Hygienists (H), in the South Atlantic region of the National Dental PBRN. The survey assessed: (1) current MRA patterns; (2) perceived self-efficacy in conducting MRAs; (3) effectiveness beliefs; (4) barriers; and (5) practices’ ability to adopt and sustain new interventions. Patients from 30 private practice clinics completed a pre-post visit survey assessing their comfort in receiving MRAs and which health risks were discussed during the current visit. Results: Dental practitioners believe MRAs are important to offer, and could be effectively offered in dental settings. Reported barriers include lack of existing referral networks, assessment tools, and practitioner/patient discomfort. Patients do not report discomfort in receiving MRAs in dental settings; however, the majority report that they were not asked about risk behaviors. Regression analysis is forthcoming, preliminary descriptive tables provided below. Conclusions: Offering MRAs in dental settings is feasible with the development of bi-directional referral networks, risk assessment tools, a shared data infrastructure, and patient education materials