• Sarbjeet Singh, Robert J Schroth, Shelley Tang, Mary F Bertone, Kathy Yerex, Khalid Hai-Santiago, Greg Finlayson, and Manitoba Dental Association.
• J Can Dent Assoc. 2020 Aug 1; 86: k10.

IntroductionResidents of long-term care (LTC) facilities face many oral health challenges, which are often complicated by their underlying medical conditions, use of medications and limited access to oral health care.ObjectiveTo determine to what extent accredited university-based dental and dental hygiene programs in Canada prepare students in the areas of geriatric oral health and oral health of LTC residents.MethodsAccredited dental and dental hygiene programs across Canada were assessed for the degree of education and training that is presented to students on the oral health of LTC residents. A survey questionnaire, emailed to programs, was used to gather descriptive statistics (frequencies, means and standard deviations), and bivariate analysis (χ2 and t tests) was completed. A p value ≤ 0.05 was considered significant.ResultsRepresentatives of all 4 dental hygiene and 9 out of 10 dental schools responded. All four dental hygiene and seven dental programs (77.8%, 7/9) stated that geriatric oral health is an integral part of their curriculum. The majority (91.6% [11/12], 4 dental hygiene and 7 of 9 dental schools) reported that their program educates students about medically, physically and cognitively compromised geriatric patients. Eight programs (3 dental hygiene and 5 dental schools), stated that they provide clinical training opportunities with LTC residents. However, some programs reported certain barriers preventing them from providing such clinical training opportunities.ConclusionOral health educational institutions must ensure that curricula are current and evidence-based to reflect the overall oral health needs of today's aging population.

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