If you provide nursing home dental services, you should know different ways to improve dental care in care homes. People living in nursing facilities are at a higher risk of dental oral health problems due to long-term conditions such as dementia and Parkinson’s disease. These diseases can make it difficult to use a toothbrush.

A lot of medicines reduce the amount of saliva that your body produces and leave people with a dry mouth. Individuals now keep their natural teeth longer but this could mean they need better dental care than people who use dentures.

Thorough support and assessments from knowledgeable and skilled staff can prevent the pain and health problems that poor dental care can cause.

Dental health assessment

Residents should have an oral health assessment when they shift to a nursing home. The results should be recorded in their care plan by both the mobile dental clinic and the nursing home staff. Care staff should then start by asking questions to know how the residents will manage their daily oral health care routine.

They should also ask the residents to know what aids they are currently using and whether they have dentures. It is also crucial to know when the resident last saw a dentist.

Care staff skills and knowledge

The care staff should know when to assess the oral health of residents and how to support the residents with their mouth care to brush their teeth at least two times a day with quality fluoride toothpaste; using their favorite denture cleaning products, and cleaning their dentures.

It is also important for people who offer nursing home dental services to understand how mouth infections or dental pain can affect the general health of the resident. The staff should know who to talk to when they want advice.