ORAL HEALTH ATTENTION IN HOSPITAL LEVEL: REPORT OF EXPERIENCES OF EDUCATION/SERVICE INTEGRATION IN DENTISTRY

Resumen

A healthy mouth is closely linked to general health and quality of life. Oral Health Education actions are extremely important in encouraging the practice of oral hygiene by the population. It is essential that actions related to oral health issues in hospitalized patients be developed by means of educational and preventive methods. In this context, students from the Extension Project of the Dentistry Course of the Federal University of Ceará saw the needs of patients of Dr. José Frota Institute for the collective actions in oral hygiene. The activities began in November 2007, being held on Sundays by 15 students divided into groups with regard to implementing the feelings of teamwork and the exchange of fun activities for the practice of solidarity. Guidelines on oral hygiene were made through the use of macro models, folders, mirrors, fluoridated toothpastes and brushes of teeth. All observations were recorded on a specific form - since the sociodemographic data to the oral health conditions in order to know the reality under an epidemiology look and make it possible to propose oral health policy in the Instituition. A total of 385 patients were assisted in two years of operation. It was founded that the prolonged hospitalization and/or obstruction of the self implementation means that oral hygiene is not prioritized, requiring the implementation of educational activities in a work environment even uncommon to the surgeon-dentist, but very promising for the designs of Dentistry, the hospital environment.