Utilization of Dental Services by Children in Low- Income Families in Alberta. ABSTRACTObjective: To explore the utilization of dental services for children among low- income families receiving assistance from 2 provincial health benefit programs in Alberta. Data related to utilization of dental services were analyzed. However, only 2. 22 (5. ACHB respondents and 1. AAHB program reported that their youngest child had received at least 1 dental service in the 1. Children in the 2 youngest age cohorts (i. The most used dental service for all age groups was a dental examination or checkup, and the least used was extraction. Parental awareness about public funding for dental services that is available did not seem to provide enough motivation to seek dental care for young children. Over a 3- week period ending in early February 2. Alberta Employment and Immigration conducted a comprehensive evaluation of clients’ use of the ACHB and AAHB programs. The 2. 00. 9 surveys, representing the fifth survey of ACHB clients and the second survey of AAHB clients, were designed to monitor whether the programs were meeting the needs of their clients. The survey questionnaire used in 2. The list contained the names of clients, parents or guardians, along with telephone numbers and readily available demographic data, as described below. The interviewers attempted to contact clients at various times, during the daytime and evening, during the week and on weekends. Each client was called up to 1. ACTIVE FAMILIES HEALTHY FAMILIES LOW INCOME RESOURCES 6 LOCATION Nunavut and Quebec as these provinces and territories operate their own student financial assistance programs. Income to determine eligibility for a Canada Student Grant for Students from Low-Income Families. Poverty in Canada remains prevalent within some segments of society and according to a 2008 report by the Organisation. The Canadian income tax system is highly. Low-income Canadians are eligible for the Canada. Financial assistance programs are available for low-income. Programs and Financial Assistance. Part of this investment includes providing support to help individuals and families living in existing social housing. Canadian County assistance programs. Case managers also work with low income families. Holiday meals and food boxes as well as free Christmas toys programs operate in Canadian County. The Canadian Encyclopedia http:// Spouses' Allowance and some provincial income supplement programs have helped more elderly. Healthy Kids > Resources in your community. Canadian Tire Jumpstart: Provides funding for children from low-income families to participate in. On Affordable Internet for Low-income. Cartt.ca will be asking every senior executive and senior government bureaucrats how we can help bring broadband to low-income families. New randomly selected batches of records were given to the interviewers when it became apparent that additional records would be required to complete the requisite number of interviews. The means by which respondents first learned about the benefit programs, their overall satisfaction with the programs and the types of dental services that the youngest child in the family had received in the past 1. The provincial department shared these data with the author of the current article for final analysis and interpretation. The results of the survey were entered into computer files and tabulated. Tables 1 and 2 present the demographic characteristics of the study participants. Among families receiving ACHB benefits, word of mouth was the most frequently cited way (1. In contrast, nearly half of the AAHB clients (1. However, only 2. 22 (5. ACHB respondents (Table 4) and 1. AAHB program (Table 5) reported that their youngest child had received at least 1 dental service in the 1. In both programs, the proportion of youngest children who had received dental services was much lower for those 2 to 4 years of age (3. A higher percentage of youngest children aged 5 to 9 years (8. Conversely, children 5–9 and 1. The most commonly used dental service for all age groups was a dental examination or checkup; the least common service used was extraction. However, in this study sample, especially among children 5–9 years of age, the ratio of extractions to restorations (1: 2) was relatively high. This finding may indicate that the children are presenting late in the course of disease, which would leave extraction as the best option. The data presented here have reconfirmed that, despite great need, low- income families underutilize the support for dental services for children that is available from provincial governments in Canada. Although each respondent was asked about the frequency and types of dental services received by his or her youngest child in the 1. In this survey, the majority of respondents (9. ACHB respondents and 8. AAHB respondents) agreed that the health benefit programs administered by Alberta Employment and Immigration helped them or their children to obtain dental services that they would not otherwise have been able to receive. However, about half of the children in these families had received no dental services in the 1. This finding is consistent with previous reports for people on social assistance in Canada and Medicaid recipients in the United States. Factors related to limited use of dental services by low- income families have been mainly described in the context of barriers to access. Psychosocial factors associated with utilization of dental services have been identified as oral health beliefs, norms of caregiver responsibility and positive dental experiences of the caregiver. Bedos and colleagues,1. Montreal (Quebec), found that among people receiving social assistance, oral health beliefs influenced their care- seeking behaviours, including their preference for certain treatments and their selective use of dental services. For example, it has been a common belief among low- income families that professional care is required when a health problem arises, with less value placed on preventive services. However, the low utilization of dental services by these families may be the result of the care delivery system and not the parents’ choice to avoid care for their children. The limited information on psychosocial barriers that prevent parents from seeking care for their young children, including parents’ perceptions of dental problems and their decision- making about the “right time” to seek professional care, indicate that further exploratory research is warranted. The importance of an early dental examination must be emphasized by health care professionals and all other stakeholders in children’s oral health. Primary health care providers are uniquely positioned to play a significant role in the prevention of early childhood caries and should receive additional training in assessment of caries risk, preventive interventions, education of caregivers and referral to a dental professional. The American Academy of Pediatrics also recommends that the first caries risk assessment be performed by a child health professional at age 6 months (during a well- child visit) and that referrals to a dentist for the establishment of a “dental home” should occur within 6 months after eruption of the first primary tooth and no later than age 1 year. This study also revealed that only about 1. ACHB program or the AAHB program for children younger than 4 years of age. Local public health programs in Alberta and other Canadian provinces provide a variety of dental public health programs to schoolchildren 4 to 1. Canada. 1. 0 Dental coverage has been considered an important factor that would increase the utilization of preventive services by low- income families. Therefore, the involvement of local community organizations, such as the Multicultural Health Brokers Co- operative in Edmonton (a registered worker’s cooperative providing outreach to about 1. In addition, psychosocial factors influencing parents’ care- seeking behaviour were not determined in this study, and the survey was unable to demonstrate whether and how people with diverse ethnic backgrounds use dental services differently. It is already known that ethnicity plays an important role in the ways in which immigrants interact with providers of health services. For example, in the Toronto study mentioned above, native- born Canadians were more likely to report visits for preventive dental care, but immigrants reported treatment as the main reason for a dental visit. In the survey reported here, respondents were not only aware of the provincial benefit programs, but also had used the coverage to some extent. As such, recognized barriers, such as lack of knowledge about programs and benefits, and other behavioural barriers, such as parental self- efficacy regarding taking their children to a dentist, were not factors in the low rates of utilization. Therefore, the explanation for underutilization should be explored by examining other types of determinants or barriers. Parents’ knowledge about available coverage for dental services provided through publicly funded programs did not seem to offer enough motivation for them to seek dental care for their young children. The psychosocial factors influencing optimal use of dental services for young children require further exploration. Amin, School of dentistry, Division of pediatric dentistry, University of Alberta, 4. Dentistry/Pharmacy Centre,Edmonton, AB T6. G 2. N8. Email: maryam. The author has no declared financial interests. A longitudinal study of dental caries risk among very young low SES children. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. Understanding health behavior and perceptions. Does Medicaid improve utilization of medical and dental services and health outcomes for Medicaid- eligible children in the United States? Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. Oral Health: dental disease is a chronic problem among low- income populations. Washington, DC: Publication GAO/ HEHS- 0. Available: www. gao. April 2. 9, 2. 01. Predictors of dental care utilization among working poor Canadians. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. Disparities in oral health- related quality of life in a population of Canadian children. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. Canadian dentists' opinions on publicly financed dental care. J Public Health Dent. Dental disease prevalence, prevention, and health promotion: the implications on pediatric oral health of a more diverse population. Werneck RI, Lawrence HP, Kulkarni GV, Locker D. Early childhood caries and access to dental care among children of Portuguese- speaking immigrants in the city of Toronto. J Can Dent Assoc. Barriers to care- seeking for children's oral health among low- income caregivers. How people on social assistance perceive, experience, and improve oral health. Rural Mexican immigrant parents' interpretation of children's dental symptoms and decisions to seek treatment. Community Dent Health. Caregiver's perception of child's oral health status among low- income African Americans. CDA position on first visit to the dentist. Available: www. cda- adc. Children's health topics – Oral health. Use of dental services by immigrant Canadians.
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