Healthy People 2020 Impact Paper: Oral Health in Amarillo, Texas

This impact paper examines oral health, focusing on Amarillo, Texas, and its school-aged children population. It identifies prevalent oral health issues such as tooth decay, gum diseases, and disparities, referencing data from sources like ADA and Texas Interfaith Center for Public Policy. The paper highlights the Healthy People 2020 goals for oral health, including increasing awareness, improving preventive approaches, and reducing disparities. It discusses the importance of oral health screenings, preventive measures, and educational interventions for both parents and children, in line with HP2020 objectives. The paper also suggests interventions such as dental camps and mandatory oral health programs in primary care clinics to address the dental needs of the people residing in remote areas or those belonging from low income groups. The paper concludes by emphasizing the need for comprehensive strategies to improve oral health outcomes and reduce disparities within the community.

Running head: HEALTHY PEOPLE 2020 IMPACT PAPER
Occupational health and safety
HEALTHY PEOPLE 2020 IMPACT PAPER
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Occupational health and safety
Introduction
Oral diseases are the most common condition and an important public health problem
because of the prevalence, the impact of common people and the cost associated to the
treatment. Oral health affects people physically as well as psychologically and affects the
way they grow, they enjoy life, speak, chew, taste and socialize. Dental caries distract the
quality of life of people. This provides the rationale for choosing oral health as the topic of
discussion. The particular area of the study that has been chosen for the study is Amarillo,
Texas. The target population chosen is school aged children.
Discussion
Some of the problems associated to oral health found in Amarillo, Texas, involved
tooth decay, sensitive teeth, gum diseases, halitosis (bad breath) and canker sores. The overall
condition of the mouth and teeth in Texas, are not in good condition. About 1 in four adults in
Texas, have dental problems. It has been reported that 28 % of the adults avoid smiling
because of their dental condition and 28% of the adults feel anxious about their dental
condition. The top oral health issue for the low income adults in experiencing pain (ADA,
2017). 31% of the high income adults have found to be experiencing pain due to the
condition of the mouth and teeth. 7.5 % of Texas children have poor dental health (ADA,
2017). The Texas rate of untreated decay among the third graders surpass the national
average, indicating towards a worst dental health.
Descriptive demographic and epidemiological data on the mortality and morbidity
health risk
Children bear subsequent burden of the craniofacial injuries and disorders. The rate of
oral cancer mortality rate in Texas, is about 2.6 per1000, 000 people is on the par to the
national rate of 2.5. Tooth loss has been found to be indirectly related to mortality by causing

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poor nutrition and poor eating behaviour (Texas Interfaith Center for Public Policy, 2017).
Dental carries have been found to influence a pro-inflammatory state that accelerates the
process of coronary heart diseases. Apart from this, children having periodontal problems are
often subjected greater absenteeism from the school (Kim et al., 2017). Despite of a number
of children who go for a dental visit every year, Texas, ranks 39th out of the 40 reported cases
of children having dental caries. Oral health disparities have been found in the United States.
Even after the important improvement in the oral health for the entire population, the
disparities still remains. Some of the social factors that can contribute to such lifestyle
behaviours includes the tobacco use, the use of alcohol and poor choices of diet. The greatest
racial and the ethnic disparity among the children aged 2-4 years and aged 6-8 years is seen
in Mexican American and the black, non-Hispanic children. Again the prevalence of oral
cancer has been found to be more among the African American in comparison to white
Americans (Texas Interfaith Center for Public Policy, 2017). The border and the rural regions
of Texas are overburdened with diseases, high proportion of household with low income and
food insecurity in the population. As per the reports, children consuming sugary beverages
are contributing to compromised oral health. It has been reported that from the year 2014-
2017, the number of Texans receiving fluoridated water have decreased from 65 % 75%
(Dye, Thornton-Evans, Li & Iafolla, 2015).
Goal, overview and objectives of Healthy People 2020 for oral health
Goal
To prevent and control oral and craniofacial disorders, injuries and conditions and t improve
access to preventive services and dental care

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Objectives
 To increase awareness of the importance of oral health to overall health and wellbeing of
people
 To improve the adoption of various preventive approaches to reduce and control the
periodontal disease.
 To reduce disparities for accessing effective dental and preventive treatment services
All these goals are in compliance with the goals of the healthy people. This has been given
importance in the healthy people goals is because of the fact that oral health is an
important part of staying healthy (Chi et al., 2017). Good oral health allows a person to
speak, smile, smell, taste and touch. Furthermore, it has already been mentioned that oral
health is the most essential part of staying healthy. The Healthy people 2020 is the national
framework that has been adopted to improve the overall health of the Americans.
Population level prevention and health promotion review
Oral health screening is the primary step for the prevention of tooth decay and other
periodontal disease. There are certain rapid oral health screening and risk assessment
techniques for screening the presence of oral disorders. Certain questions are asked to the
patients on a rating of 1-10 scale. The American Academy of Paediatrics (AAP) have
developed a tool that assists the patients to rate the risk factors, the protective factors and the
clinical findings.
The policy makers as well as the communities in Texas and the communities residing
throughout the country should take proper measures to improve the oral health. Key steps
should include reduction of the disparities, such that all the population regardless of the race,
income and location can get adequate dental care (Nakre & Harikiran, 2013). The lawmakers

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and the communities should strive to increase the number of Texans to receive the fluoridated
water and increased access to the dental health clinic.
Some of the dental programs for children includes sealants program, who might not
receive a routine dental care. This might include children who are at highest risk of having
tooth decay (Nakre & Harikiran, 2013). This involves application of thin plastic coatings on
the time grooves of the teeth. Education to both the parents and the children needs to be given
about the tooth brushing and oral hygiene, use of fluoridated tooth paste, early screening and
detection of cavities, avoidance of sugary beverages.
Considering the HP 2020, goals, dental camps can be organised providing free dental
checkups to the rural people or distributing tooth pastes and brushes free of cost in order to
address the dental care needs of the people residing in remote areas or those belonging from
low income groups
In can be stated that more emphasis should be given on the dental care and should be
made mandatory in a primary care clinic.

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References
ADA, (2017).Oral Health and Well-Beingin Texas. Access date: 12.3.2020. Retrieved
from:https://www.ada.org/en/~/media/ADA/Science%20and%20Research/HPI/
OralHealthWell-Being-StateFacts/Texas-Oral-Health-Well-Being.pdf
Chi, D. L., Masterson, E. E., Carle, A. C., Mancl, L. A., & Coldwell, S. E. (2014).
Socioeconomic status, food security, and dental caries in US children: mediation
analyses of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2007–
2008. American journal of public health, 104(5), 860-864.
https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/full/10.2105/AJPH.2013.301699
Dye, B. A., Thornton-Evans, G., Li, X., & Iafolla, T. (2015). Dental caries and tooth loss in
adults in the United States, 2011-2012. US Department of Health and Human
Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health
Statistics.
Kim, J. K., Baker, L. A., Davarian, S., & Crimmins, E. (2013). Oral health problems and
mortality. Journal of dental sciences, 8(2), 10.1016/j.jds.2012.12.011.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jds.2012.12.011
Nakre, P. D., & Harikiran, A. G. (2013). Effectiveness of oral health education programs: A
systematic review. Journal of International Society of Preventive & Community
Dentistry, 3(2), 103–115. https://doi.org/10.4103/2231-0762.127810
Texas Interfaith Center for Public Policy, (2017).Oral Health. Access date: 12.3.2020.
Retrieved from: https://texasimpact.org/2019/12/oral-health/\