Policy Publications
Across the United States, dental schools deliver high-quality oral health care to many communities. Nearly 19,000 oral health students—predoctoral, allied, and residents and postdoctoral—deliver oral health care services under the close supervision of one of the more than 6,000 faculty clinicians in dental schools across the country. The ADEA report sheds light on the revenue sources and patient demographics of dental school clinics, revealing their disproportionate roles in delivering oral health care services to individuals enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP, people of color and working age adults.
February 2024 | ADEA Policy Research Series Issue 6
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Access the online storyboard with interactive charts
The connection between an individual’s oral health and overall health is well established in the oral health literature. Particularly, oral health diseases, such as periodontal disease, are a major complication in patients with diabetes and vice versa. This report addresses the importance of the oral-systemic link and how oral and chronic diseases, such as diabetes, benefit from a higher level of integration of primary health care and oral health care. This research also discusses dental education’s role in preparing the oral health providers of tomorrow to recognize the oral systemic link and its importance to overall health.
February 2022 | ADEA Policy Research Series Issue 5
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The COVID-19 pandemic and stay-at-home orders accelerated the rapid expansion of telehealth and its increased utilization. Teledentistry, a subcategory of telehealth, has become a commonly accepted form of oral health care delivery, including in specialty dentistry, and has played an important role in reducing health disparities and achieving equitable health. This report outlines state regulations and reimbursement mechanisms for teledentistry, the role of teledentistry in minimizing oral health disparities through practice and dental education, and teledentistry’s compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) for the prevention and treatment of oral health diseases. This report provides educators with information about the benefits of including teledentistry in dental education and continuing to expand this important field.
October 2021 | ADEA Policy Research Series Issue 4
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This policy research summary report showcases the impact of the pandemic on patient visits in dental school clinics, budgets, personnel changes, and infrastructure investments made to prevent the spread of COVID-19. These key findings were captured by the ADEA COVID-19 Impact Survey of U.S. Dental Schools conducted between November 2020 and January 2021.
May 2021
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Overprescription of antibiotics is a rapidly increasing public health concern. Dental educators play a pivotal role in promoting antibiotic stewardship to monitor overprescription and limit antibiotic resistance. Introducing prescription guideline policies in dental school curricula and clinics can arm dental educators with the tools to teach safe and effective antibiotic prescription guidelines to the oral health care workforce of tomorrow. This policy brief underscores pedagogical initiatives that academic dentistry can take to combat antibiotic overprescription and be a steward in the fight against antibiotic resistance.
April 2021
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Additional Antibiotics Resources.
Dental amalgam has been used for the last 150 years for tooth fillings, and an estimated 100 million or more Americans are beneficiaries of dental amalgam. Fifty percent of the restorative material is comprised of a metal alloy mixture of silver, tin and copper, and 50% is elemental mercury. The use of mercury in dental amalgam has raised concerns as a potential health hazard. However, studies have shown that dental amalgam is a safe, affordable and widely used dental material for teeth restoration.
February 2021
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Community water fluoridation is one of the 10 greatest public health achievements of the 20th century. National efforts of community water fluoridation prevent oral diseases, deliver health care savings and reduce oral health disparities. ADEA strongly supports optimal fluoridation of community water.
October 2020
View the infographic.
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Additional Water Fluoridation Resources.
The opioid epidemic continues to be a leading public health crisis in the United States. This data brief supplements the March 2018 ADEA Policy Brief, The Role of Dental Education in the Prevention of Opioid Prescription Drug Misuse, and presents the overarching findings of the ADEA Opioid Dental School Survey.
March 2020
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This report provides a brief discussion of dental school applicant and enrollment trends by race/ethnicity. Dental provider shortages in underserved geographic areas are also explored, along with underrepresented minority (URM) dentists and U.S. racial/ethnic population parity data. The report also highlights the
Summer Medical and Dental Education Program, a program that is positively impacting the number of students interested in serving underserved communities and URM dentists entering dental school and graduating.
Published March 2018; updated November 2018
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Interprofessional education (IPE) occurs when learners in two or more health professions collaborate to advance the health of individuals and communities. Established in 2009, the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) has been a leader in promoting the integration of IPE activities to advance health professions pedagogy. As one of IPEC’s founding members, the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) promotes the integration of interprofessional education within academic dental institutions as well as with other health professions schools and programs to improve oral health care and outcomes. In 2018, more than 82% of graduating dental seniors self-reported that interacting across the health professions during their academic careers improved their understanding of how to better care for patients. IPE allows dental students to strengthen their education while also inspiring them to serve as leaders in the promotion of collaborative practice and team-based care.
November 2018
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The dental faculty landscape is undergoing significant change. With 2015-16 data indicating that over 40% of faculty at academic dental institutions are over 60 years old, creating opportunities and interest in academic dentistry careers has taken on elevated importance. ADEA is helping its member institutions
address this issue by promoting awareness among predoctoral and allied dental students and advanced education residents and fellows of the value and importance of academic careers.
October 2018
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Trends in health care practice indicate that teams produce
more effective patient outcomes than individuals providing clinical care. Our task in dental education is to use this
team approach to provide a framework for successful dental teams to treat oral
diseases. This white paper, a
collaboration among the ADEA Council of Deans and the ADEA Council of Allied
Dental Program Directors, presents a
summary of the 2016 ADEA Survey of Intraprofessional Dental Education and provides examples of intraprofessional dental education models to
aid institutions in implanting intraprofessional education into their
curriculum.
August 2018
This white paper examines the persistent unmet need for dental care and outlines the contributions of dental safety net providers, including academic dental institutions, in addressing it.
April 2018
The impact of the opioid epidemic has been felt in communities in all 50 U.S. states, and curbing the epidemic’s exponential trajectory requires special attention from dental educators. This policy brief highlights strategies that demonstrate academic dentistry’s contributions to combating the opioid
epidemic.
March 2018
This white paper provides an analysis of Medicaid expansion, or lack thereof, and its effect on the delivery of dental care under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
January 2016
This white paper reviews the Ryan White dental programs, the populations served by the programs, the federal funding streams for oral health and the opportunities and challenges presented by health care reform.
January 2015