Oral Health | Clinical and Risk Asessment | The limitations of dental health education

The limitations of dental health education
Session overview
Description
This session discusses dental health education, and focuses on the role of the dentist in practice. It explores the relationship between health education and health promotion in outlining the key dental health messages for individuals.

Learning objectives
By the end of this session you will be able to:

• describe what is meant by the term 'dental health education'
• describe the relationship between dental health education and health promotion
• state the evidence for the effectiveness of dental health education
• list the key dental health education messages

Prerequisites
Before commencing this session you should have:

• a basic understanding of the concept and importance of clinical prevention of oral disease, which is covered in the e-Den session Patient assessment/Health promotion and disease prevention/Principles of prevention
• a basic understanding of the concept of health promotion, which is covered in the e-Den session Patient assessment/Health promotion and disease prevention/What is health promotion?

In your clinical career, whatever the setting, educating your patients to maintain their health and prevent disease will be a core service you provide.

Dental health education that results in a positive change in behaviour, is however probably one of the most difficult and challenging aspects of patient care.

In this session we look at what is meant by 'dental health education'.

We explore the ways in which dental health education relates to the overall strategy of health promotion. We will also consider what is effective in education, setting out the key dental health education messages to be given to patients and the general public.

It is important to consider that it does not matter how well executed and evidence based our treatments are, we will never: