Approaches

Oral health care includes promotion, prevention & rehabilitation, as well as, treatement.

Basic oral care

The development and improvement of oral health worldwide is a key activity of the FDI. The World Dental Development and Health Promotion Committee and other structures of the FDI work towards this aim.

Although oral health is often of low priority for decision makers, almost all countries allocate some public funds for oral health care services. It is therefore important to ensure that these limited resources are used appropriately and efficiently. Health and oral health are public goods, and all stakeholders, including the dental profession, must recognise their responsibility for maintaining and improving oral health for all people. Traditional, ineffective Western dental approaches need to be replaced by innovative strategies that focus on prevention, appropriate technology and affordable measures that meet the needs of the population and fit into the existing health care infrastructure.

On of these innovative concepts is the Basic Package of Oral Care (BPOC). It has been developed by the WHO Collaborating Centre at the University of Nijmegen and is endorsed by the WHO.

Read more about the BPOC Concept.

Prevention

To treat dental caries by traditional resorative methods is beyond the financial capabilities of the majority of low-income countries, as a large majority of these countries do not even have sufficient resources to fund an essential package of health care services for their child population. It is not rational to use the restorative approach to control caries. Rather, a concerted public health and health promotion approach to reduce the cause of caries and dental trauma is required. Strategies adopting these principles are more appropriate, affordable and sustainable.

Dental decay is preventable

Dental caries is by far the most common and costly oral disease and also has the greatest impact on populations. Clinically significant dental caries occurs only in the presence of excess dietary sugar. The best available evidence indicates that the level of dental caries is low in countries where the consumption of free sugars is below 15-20 kg per person per year. This dietary control of tooth decay can be supplemented by the use of fluoride, which prevents the disease, whether present in drinking water, milk, salt or in toothpaste. The use of fissure sealants is an effective way to prevent pit and fissure caries, especially in high-risk populations.

Oral diseases have all too often been regarded as an individual responsibility. However, this notion of individual responsibility does not address the fact that lifestyle is moulded by experience. It is important that the "causes of the causes" are addressed. The focus needs to be directed towards why unhealthy oral health behaviour has been established rather than on a victim-blaming approach. It is unreasonable to expect individuals to change personal behaviours in the presence of unsupportive socio-economic situations.

WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care

Help shape the WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care by signing up as a Complementary Test Site.

As part of the World Alliance for Patient Safety's strategy of engagement and partnership working with key stakeholders in the field of patient safety, the Alliance is publicising one of the key areas of work of the First Global Patient Safety - Challenge on health care-associated infection.

There are many health care facilities around the world interested in the WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care (Advanced Draft) and particularly interested in the tools and strategies for implementation. By enrolling as a Complementary Test Site, health care facilities gain access to an exclusive web community platform and all of the tools for hand hygiene improvement.

Details of enrollment
English (.pdf, 2MB) French (.pdf, 2MB) Spanish (.pdf, 1MB)