Integrating Oral Health into Health Professions School Curricula

Stephanie A Gill; Rocio B Quinonez; Mark Deutchman; Charles E Conklin; Denise Rizzolo; David Rabago; Paul Haidet; Hugh Silk

doi:10.1080/10872981.2022.2090308

Integrating Oral Health into Health Professions School Curricula

Med Educ Online. 2022 Dec;27(1):2090308. doi: 10.1080/10872981.2022.2090308.

Authors

Stephanie A Gill¹, Rocio B Quinonez², Mark Deutchman³, Charles E Conklin⁴, Denise Rizzolo⁵, David Rabago⁶, Paul Haidet⁷, Hugh Silk⁸

Affiliations

¹ Family and Community Medicine, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA.
² Office of Academic Affairs, University of North Carolina Adams School of Dentistry, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
³ Family Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.
⁴ Department of Surgery, and Tread Director for Oral Health and Oral Medicine, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, Roanoke, VA, USA.
⁵ Assessment and Evaluation Specialist for the Physician Assistant Education Association, Washington, DC, USA.
⁶ Faculty Development, Family and Community Medicine, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA.
⁷ Departments of Medicine, Humanities, and Public Health Sciences, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, USA.
⁸ Family Medicine and Community Health, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA.

Abstract

Oral health is essential to human health. Conditions associated with poor oral health involve all organ systems and many major disease categories including infectious disease, cardiovascular disease, chronic pain, cancer, and mental health. Outcomes are also associated with health equity. Medical education organizations including the Association of American Medical Colleges and National Academy of Medicine recommend that oral health be part of medical education. However, oral health is not traditionally included in many medical school, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner curricula. Several challenges explain this exclusion including lack of time, expertise, and prioritization; we therefore provide suggestions for integrating oral health education into the health professions school curriculum. These recommendations offer guidance for enhancing the oral health curriculum across institutions. We include key organizational and foundational steps, strategies to link oral health with existing content, and approaches to achieve curricular sustainability.

Keywords: health professions education; interprofessional education; medical education; oral health curriculum; oral health integration.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Curriculum
Education, Medical*
Health Occupations
Humans
Oral Health* / education
Schools, Medical

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $995,448 with 36 percent funded by nongovernment sources. The contents are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsment, by HRSA/HHS, or the U.S. Government.