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Project Name: Grants to States to Support Oral Health Workforce Activities (T12)
Applicant Title: DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, GOVERNMENT OF
Abstract Text: The District of Columbia Department of Health (DC Health) submits its competitive application for funding under HRSA-22-050 to increase utilization of oral health services in DC’s Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) by implementing innovations to reduce the use of the emergency for dental emergencies and assess and address the impact of COVID-19 on the oral health workforce (allowable activities 5 and 13, respectively). To achieve its goal of increasing utilization of oral health services, DC Health’s Oral Health Program (OHP) will implement activities, primarily targeted to residents in Wards 7 and 8, which are in a Dental HPSA, to achieve the following measurable objectives: Objective A: Increase linkage to dental homes for residents of DC’s Dental HPSAs Activity 1: Assess emergency department (ED) utilization for dental emergencies; Activity 2: Implement grant programs to pilot strategies to reduce ED utilization for dental emergencies; and Activity 3: Monitor grantee activities to assess program impact Objective B: Increase retention of oral health workforce Activity 1: Assess oral health workforce trends over the last two years; Activity 2: Implement grant programs to address oral health workforce needs; and Activity 3: Evaluate grant activities to measure impact on oral health workforce needs. Objective C: Increase knowledge of effective methods of engaging populations in care. Activity 1: Disseminate findings from grant programs for adoption of interventions; and Activity 2: Attend conferences and trainings on increasing dental home utilization. All activities will be carried out by the Oral Health Program in coordination with a wide-range of internal and external partners, including but not limited to other DC Health programs, sister government agencies, private and public organizations, EDs, and the District’s federally qualified health centers.