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Nursing home executive directors' perception of oral care in long‐term care facilities
Author(s) -
Pyle Marsha A.,
Jasinevicius T. Roma,
Sawyer Danny R.,
Madsen Jason
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
special care in dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.328
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1754-4505
pISSN - 0275-1879
DOI - 10.1111/j.1754-4505.2005.tb01420.x
Subject(s) - medicine , oral health , long term care , nursing , family medicine , likert scale , oral health care , assisted living facility , nursing homes , health care , perception , gerontology , psychology , economics , economic growth , developmental psychology , neuroscience
Oral health in long‐term care (LTC) facilites has been repratdly documented as less than ideal. The complex nature of this enviroment has made it difficult to understand and improve the oral health status of residents through education and training. The purpose of the study was to investigate how the executive directors (EDs) of LTC facilites value oral health and to determine facility variables. which may infulunce how oral care is deliverd. A mail survey of the EDs of all LTC facilities in Ohio (n = 1018) was conducted with 338 responses received after secondary follow‐up (33.2%response rate). The 30‐item survey inculuded information concerning the nursing facility, the EDs, the EDs' perception of the level of oral health care, and value statements rated on a Likert‐like scale. The results of the survey showed that more than two‐third of the EDs were female and that most facilities were proprietary (70.3%). ED gender was not statistically associated with any of the oral health variables. Fifty‐three percent of the EDs rated their residents' oral health as fair of poor but were still satisfied with the oral care proveded at their facilites. The apparant discontinuity between perceived lebvels of oral health and satisfaction with oral care suggests that EDs are distanced form the oral care of thir residents or they do not acknowledge oral health care needs. While the survey results revealed inmpotant facility characteristics and administrators' perceptiosn about oral health, the most important aspect of this project was the low response rate despite secondary follow‐up. That, coupled with the negativity expressed upon follow‐up, suggests a larger issue that may affect oral health in nursing facilities: oral health continues to have a low priority in this setting. Continuing efforts to improve oral health and educate LTC professionals about oral health's influence on general health is critical for managing the oral health or future generatiosn of aging aduts.