As part of its long-term strategy to reduce the need for intervention surgery services, PDI case managers combine prevention education and community outreach efforts to best educate families. These efforts are twofold:

 

• Staff works within the community to inform families of the importance of good oral hygiene practices and how to prevent ECC and tooth decay from occurring.
• Staff works with local service providers to equip them with the tools necessary to educate families on the importance of good oral hygiene practices and how to prevent ECC and tooth decay from occurring and from reoccurring.
• Outreach efforts focus on informing families about the surgery center and PDI services.

 

The Oral Health Partnership of Sonoma County's well-regarded dental education curriculum is employed by PDI throughout the five-county service area of Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, Napa and Marin counties. This bilingual parent and provider training curriculum has been used extensively in Sonoma County which, over the past three years, has seen a precipitous decline in ECC in children tracked through the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program. In addition to parent education, case managers conduct ongoing outreach to clinics and other dental providers regarding the current programs offered by PDI.

 

PDI differs from other similar efforts in that it addresses a significant health disparity by providing access to a desperately needed treatment (dentistry with anesthesia), while simultaneously providing case management and community level activities that will help prevent ECC cases in the future. This unique program utilizes the efficiencies and revenue stream of a financially self-sustaining surgery center to support these community-based services. PDI believes that it is developing a new model of service that can be replicated in many communities where ECC is a significant health problem for low-income children.