Low utilization of dental care among minority children is of concern because of their disproportionate caries experience. Utilization is a complex behavior related to economic status, behaviors, perceptions and access issues. Support from a school nurse may provide the impetus to help parents access dental care for their children. Objective: to determine if a phone call from the school nurse encouraging parents to obtain dental care for their children, and offering help in finding a dentist, improves dental utilization. Method: 182 African American and Mexican-Hispanic kindergartners in a low income urban school had been screened per school policy for dental needs. The 64 children judged as needing dental care were randomly divided into two groups: the Nurse Call Group and the Control Group. School nurses called the parents in the Nurse Call Group to remind them of their child's needs and to offer help finding a dentist. Three months later, all parents in both groups were called once by a research assistant to see if dental care had been obtained and to offer assistance in finding a dentist. Results: In the Nurse Call Group, 16 (50%) were not reachable or refused, 11 (34%) eventually reported obtaining the dental care, and 5 (16%) reported not obtaining the dental care. In the Control Group, 24 (75%) were not reachable or refused, 4 (12.5%) reported obtaining the dental care, and 4 (12.5%) reported not obtaining the dental care. The sample size was too small to obtain statistical significance in a 3X2 chi square analysis, c²=4.98, p=0.083. Conclusion: Using nurses as caseworkers to promote dental follow-up may be effective if examined in larger numbers, but the efficacy is limited by difficulty in reaching the parents. Funded by CDC through the University of Alabama Prevention Research Center.

Back to the Behavioral Sciences Program
Back to the IADR/AADR/CADR 80th General Session (March 6-9, 2002)

Top Level Search