AMERICANS RECOGNIZE the correlation between oral health and overall health. A Guardian Life Insurance Co. study revealed that 89 percent of people surveyed believe it. But even though good oral health is directly responsible for better whole-body health and 90 percent of all systemic diseases have oral manifestations, dental insurance benefits are not given the same level of respect as health insurance.
OraMedica International published a white paper that addresses this disparity and makes recommendations for correcting it. For one thing, according to the company, dental health needs to be incorporated into an overall wellness program. This can be accomplished in a number of ways:
- Motivating strategy: Empower employees to be their own dental advocate through education, training, risk assessments and a consumer dental resource guide.
- Training programs: Company executives must be trained in and accepting of dental wellness initiatives before employees are asked to accept them.
- Education:Tools can include tips booklets, CDs,Webinars and more.
- Screening: Non-invasive screenings at health fairs can raise awareness.
- Benefits consulting: The key to maximizing any dental health program is making sure dental insurance is affordable.
Incorporating a dental strategy into a wellness program takes on additional importance when the impact of dental distress in the workplace is analyzed. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates there are 164 million hours of work lost each year due to dental visits and disease. OraMedica said that number doesn’t take into account the time and expense of other health problems associated with oral diseases.
The full white paper is available at www.oramedica.com.