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You are participating in an outdoor health fair at a local park. You ask each of the adult participants that visit your booth to complete a 10 question questionnaire in order to be registered to win an electric toothbrush. In your questionnaire, you ask demographic questions like sex, age, race, education level, and income range and then ask questions about oral hygiene habits, smoking, and how often they visit the dentist. You also conduct open mouth exams using a light to look for signs of oral cancer. Use this information to answer questions #42-47   With your oral screenings, you recognize that some individuals from different ethnic groups are more tentative about showing you their tongue than others. What would not be culturally sensitive for you do?

Direct access is a national standard that improves access to dental care by allowing dental hygienists and dental assistants to practice without dentists in underserved areas. Outside of the dental therapists that Alaska uses, Minnesota was the first state to graduate students with degrees that allow advanced duties as a mid-level dental provider. (#59 only)

A dental hygienist employed by a dental clinic at a federal prison would like to implement a program to reduce plaque for the female prisoners. She has worked at the prison for three years and has noticed a very high prevalence of gingivitis and periodontal disease in the prisoners. The warden has given her permission to conduct a pilot program with funding for additional supplies and increased working hours. One of the first steps the dental hygienist performed was to distribute a survey to the 75 female prisoners in the pilot program. The survey data indicated that 65% brush daily, 10% floss on a regular basis, and 80% of dental emergencies are due to toothaches. Use this information to answer questions 16-20 What is the purpose of implementing a pilot program?

A high school class of ten physically challenged students, 14-19 years of age, shows a need for improved oral hygiene. The high school nurse has asked the districts dental hygienist to assess their needs and to work with the nurse to implement a community outreach program for these students. The dental hygienist plans to set up a portable dental unit to orally screen the students and to implement an evaluation tool to determine the dental health knowledge of the group. Additionally, the hygienist plans to provide oral hygiene instruction each month during the remainder of the school year and the nurse will follow up with the instructions once a week.  The O’Learys plaque score at the initial assessment of the class was:  25%, 25%, 50%, 50%, 60%, 60%, 60%, 75%, 75%, and 100% The mean score for Oral Hygiene Index – Simplified score of the ten students was 4.8 Use this information to answer questions 22 – 27.   A complete dental assessment of the class should include all of the following EXCEPT one. Which one is the EXCEPTION?  

Two public health dental hygienists were asked to assess the periodontal needs of persons currently living in six homeless shelters. One study was performed to compare the periodontal status of the adult males to that of the adult females to determine any oral health differences. The total number of people living in all six shelters is 464, and after informed consent was obtained, it was decided to select a sampling of 150 persons for the study. Participant selection was performed by first placing each person who agreed to participate in a male or female category and then placing each person into one of three age groups: 18 to 30, 31 to 45, and 46 to 60. The results of this study were then compared to a similar study performed three years ago prior to state funding that allocated money to dentists who treated the state’s homeless population. Use this information for questions 68-69This research approach used is an example of what type of epidemiologic study?

You are asked to be an advisory resource for a children’s hospital to provide education for improved oral care for critically ill children that are there for extended periods of time. You conduct weekly educational programs for the clinic patients, their parents, and the hospital staff. In addition, you also give the children fluoride varnish treatments once per month. Use this information to answer questions #37-41 The term community refers only to geographical boundaries, not to population groups. Within public health, “target populations” are groups of individuals in need of improved access to care.

You are interested in studying the caries experience at a Head Start program. The Columbus school you visit is composed of primarily Hispanic children who speak English as a second language. You want to implement a prevention program and get the parents more involved. The parents are mainly uninsured, but the children are eligible for Medicaid and SCHIP. Use this information to answer questions #52-56. Which caries prevention program should you educate the families about using, which is available to them at no additional cost, is easy to access, and available at their homes as long as they live within the Columbus city limits?

You are employed by the county health department in a rural health professional shortage area (HPSA) as a dental hygienist. In addition to your work as a clinician, you are also in charge of the fluoride varnish programs at the local elementary schools. Use this information to answer questions #32-36 The fees which are based on the patient’s ability to pay are termed:

A dental hygienist employed by a children’s hospital dental clinic is responsible for coordinating programs to serve medically compromised children in the service area.  The population consists of a mix of diverse SES and ethnic groups.  The dental hygienist’s responsibilities include managing the clinic that provides dental and dental hygiene treatment for the children, training hospital staff in the daily oral care of hospitalized children,  serving as a resource to the hospital staff, conducting oral hygiene educational programs for clinic patients and their parents, and supervising the distribution of self-care fluoride products.  The effectiveness of the educational programs is evaluated by comparing pre-test and post-test scores of knowledge and oral health behavior of the clinic patients.    Answer questions #28-32 Which of the following are the three characteristics that compose epidemiologic factors of disease? Select the three answers that apply  

The board of education approached a public health dental hygienist about establishing a dental health education curriculum for the students enrolled in a public school system. The board was concerned that the only dental health education students received was during Children’s Dental Health Month when volunteer dental hygienists provided education to grades K, 3, 7, and 12. The classroom teachers were interested in implementing dental health education in the students health classes but were looking for guidance with lesson plan content and activities. The school system consists of 3500 students, grades K-12. Health care facilities, including a nurse who is available twice a week, are available at each school. Use this information to answer questions 11-14 It was found that more funding was needed to successfully implement this educational initiative. Which of the following strategies is most effective in obtaining funding?