Dental therapists linked to improved dental outcomes for Alaska Native communities in the Yukon‐Kuskokwim Delta

• Published in: Journal of Public Health Dentistry
• Main Authors: Chi, Donald L., Lenaker, Dane, Mancl, Lloyd, Dunbar, Matthew, Babb, Michael
• Other Authors: Pew Charitable Trusts, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, William T. Grant Foundation, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2018
• Subjects: Kuskokwim; Alaska; Yukon
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jphd.12263; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fjphd.12263; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/jphd.12263

Abstract Objectives Dental Health Aide Therapists (DHATs) have been part of the dental workforce in Alaska's Yukon‐Kuskokwim (YK) Delta since 2006. They are trained to provide preventive and restorative care such as filling and extractions. In this study, we evaluated community‐level dental outcomes associated with DHATs. Methods This was a secondary data analysis of Alaska Medicaid and electronic health record data for individuals in Alaska's YK Delta (2006‐2015). The independent variable was the number of DHAT treatment days in each community. Child outcomes were preventive care, extractions, and general anesthesia. Adult outcomes were preventive care and extractions. We estimated Spearman partial correlation coefficients to test our hypotheses that increased DHAT treatment days would be associated with larger proportions utilizing preventive care and smaller proportions receiving extractions at the community‐level. Results DHAT treatment days were positively associated with preventive care utilization and negatively associated with extractions for children and adults ( P < 0.0001). DHAT treatment days were not associated with increased dental treatment under general anesthesia for children. Conclusions Dental therapists are associated with more preventive care and fewer extractions. State‐level policies should consider dental therapists as part of a comprehensive solution to meet the dental care needs of individuals in underserved communities and help achieve health equity and social justice.