Workplace oral health promotion activities among community-aged care workers: A qualitative exploration

Bakri NN 1 , Ferguson CA 2 , Majeed S 2 , Thomson WM 3 , Oda K 4 , Bartlett S 2 Show all authors , Broadbent JM 3 , Smith MB 2

Affiliations 

  • 1 Centre of Population Oral Health and Clinical Prevention Studies, Faculty of Dentistry, Sungai Buloh Campus, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Selangor, Malaysia
  • 2 Department of Public Health, University of Otago, Wellington, New Zealand
  • 3 Sir John Walsh Research Institute, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
  • 4 Department of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
Community Dent Oral Epidemiol, 2023 Nov 10.
PMID: 37950336 DOI: 10.1111/cdoe.12924

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The workplace is an ideal-and priority-setting for health promotion activities. Developing and implementing workplace health promotion interventions, including oral health promotion activities, can help create health-supporting workplace environments.

OBJECTIVE: To pilot workplace oral health promotion activities among staff working in the aged care sector, report their impact and explore participants' views on the factors that contribute to participation and effectiveness.

METHODS: This study comprised three phases: (i) the development and face validation of the resources, (ii) a 3-h educational session and (iii) five interview sessions with participants 4-6 weeks following the education session. The recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically.

RESULTS: Eleven community-aged care workforce were invited to five feedback sessions. Ten participants were female and ranged in age from 18 to 64. All participants gave favourable comments about the content and delivery of the training session and accompanying resources. The participants felt that the benefits of WOHP include improved staff knowledge, awareness and oral care routine, the ability to share (and put into practice) the gained knowledge and information with their dependants, a lower risk of having poor oral health that adversely affects their well-being and work tasks, and potentially beneficial impacts on the organization's staff roster. Their attendance in the WOHP was facilitated by being paid to attend and scheduling the sessions during work time. Future WOHP suggestions include the possibility of a one-stop dental check-up at the workplace or staff dental care discounts from local dental practitioners and combining oral health with other health promotion activities.

CONCLUSIONS: Planning and implementing WOHP was deemed acceptable and feasible in this study context and successfully achieved short-term impacts among community-aged care workers. Appropriate times and locations, organizational arrangements and a variety of delivery options contributed to successful programme planning and implementation.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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