Putting Money Where the Mouth Is: Oral Health Education Grants
The nccPA Health Foundation is funding grant opportunities for research evaluating educational strategies related to oral health curriculum integration and innovation.
“Oral health is part of overall health,” said Cynthia Lord, MHS, PA-C, chair of the nccPA Health Foundation and founding director of the new PA program at Case Western Reserve University. “Each program has an opportunity to educate new cohorts of students to view the mouth as an integral part of the body and to equip them with the knowledge and skills to provide this care.”
Interested PA faculty might consider a variety of projects to evaluate changes in students’ knowledge, attitudes, and skills related to this important public health opportunity. Sample projects might include how evaluating how various innovations impact student knowledge, skills, attitudes, and likelihood to carry these concepts into practice. Innovations could include any or some combination of the following:
- Use of the national Smiles for Life Oral Health curriculum
- Fully incorporating an oral exam into the physical exam
- Use of the oral health competencies for non-dental providers identified by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
- Use of oral health to teach team-based care or system-based practice
Grant awards are available for up to $3,500, and proposals are reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis until all funds are expended. (A minimum of five grant awards will be available.) Grants provided by the foundation are part of the PA Leadership Initiative in Oral Health and are made possible through support from the National Interprofessional Initiative in Oral Health (NIIOH) with funding from the DentaQuest Foundation, Washington Dental Service Foundation, and the Connecticut Health Foundation.
Learn more and access the application. Questions? Email foundation@paexcellence.org.