Oral Health Disparities and Inequities in Older Adults

The projected shift in the demographics of US older adults predicts a larger and more diverse group who retains their teeth longer than previous generations. Because there are significant oral health disparities related to race, ethnicity, gender, and income, these demographic trends are likely to translate into a dramatic increase in oral dis-ease, a corresponding increase in treatment needs, and increased demand for ser-vices. In order to eliminate oral health disparities in older adults, the dental profession must advocate for health policies that promote tooth retention and the maintenance of good oral health in all populations of older adults. For example, the in-clusion of a comprehensive dental benefit in Medicare has the potential to significantly reduce oral health disparities by ensuring equitable access to dental care. On an indi-vidual practitioner level, dentists must develop and ensure access to culturally appro-priate clinical care. Because culturally sensitive care has been shown to improve health outcomes,39 new accreditation standards for dental and dental hygiene schools require that dental graduates are competent in providing culturally appropriate care. In addition, many organizations offer continuing education courses that provide cultural competence and sensitivity training. Dental professionals will need these skills in order to be effective members of an interdisciplinary team that appropriately tailors care to older adults, based not only on disease risk but also on cultural beliefs, comorbid con-ditions, frailty, cognitive function, and physical function. When successful, and oral health status is improved, this has the potential to positively affect overall health, pre-vent physical decline, and improve quality of life.40