July 11, 2023 – Researchers and healthcare professionals have studied the connection between oral health and systemic health for some time. The U.S. Surgeon General drew attention to that connection in its 2000 report, “Oral Health in America.” Subsequent reports have only strengthened the case for integrating medical and dental care.
Understanding and accepting the connection represents progress, but doing something about it is another matter. Integrating oral and medical care can mean co-locating dental and medical professionals and equipment; integrating digital dental and medical records; and enlisting professionals who are eager to stretch their understanding of healthcare and work with people they never worked with before. In other words, it’s a lot of work.
Despite the challenges, integrating oral and systemic health at the practice level is occurring throughout the country. For example, in December 2022, UCSF Health and UCSF Dentistry in San Francisco merged their medical and oral health records into an electronic health record. Here are some other examples:
- Delta Dental of Colorado administers the Colorado Medical-Dental Integration (CO MDI) project, which integrates registered dental hygienists into medical care teams. Its clinics have provided more than 60,000 visits for patients who otherwise may not receive care due to insurance status, transportation, geography or socioeconomic status. (Delta Dental Plans Association is a not-for-profit organization which offers dental coverage in 50 states through its network of Delta Dental companies, including Delta Dental of Colorado.)
- Zufall Health, headquartered in Dover, New Jersey, with service locations in seven counties, has provided primary care in the region since 1990 and oral health since 2000. “This allows our dental team to consult on medical patients who may appear with oral issues, and to help them address acute or chronic medical conditions that are affecting medical care,” says Rina Ramirez, M.D., chief medical officer.
- In December 2022, Pacific Dental Services, a nationwide dental support organization (DSO), announced a partnership with MemorialCare, an integrated health system in Southern California, to open at least 25 joint locations in MemorialCare Medical Group health centers throughout Orange and Los Angeles counties over the next five years. The two organizations use the Epic electronic health record system, which is expected to facilitate sharing of medical and dental information. Already, PDS supports four medical practices in the Las Vegas, Nevada, area, and it was the first DSO to partner with an accountable care organization – Commonwealth Primary Care ACO in Arizona.
Read more in the latest issue of The Journal of Healthcare Contracting.