Urgent action needed to address oral health in aged care

New research from the Registry of Senior Australians (ROSA) Research Centre based at SAHMRI has revealed one in five people living in Australian residential aged care (RAC) facilities has a significant oral health problem, with little access to dental services.

An analysis of 360,305 residents showed 19.6% entered residential aged care with at least one oral health concern, including issues like gum disease, tooth loss and cavities. 

More than 7,000 residents were hospitalised due to oral health complications, despite half of those cases being potentially preventable.

Lead researcher, Professor Gill Caughey says appropriate access to dental care is cause for concern.

“Our findings highlight that oral health care for our most vulnerable older Australians is not meeting the mark, these hospitalisations are really the tip of the iceberg in terms of poor oral health care and their impact on these individuals’ health and wellbeing,” Prof Caughey said.

Poor oral health is linked to a host of comorbidities with the potential to increase the risk of poor health outcomes, such as cardiovascular disease, pneumonia, and cognitive decline.

“Systemic barriers to better oral health care, include poor access, high staff turnover, limited dental/oral health education, high costs, and poor integration between aged care and health sectors,” Prof Caughey said.

“Despite clear recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety in 2021, including improved access to dental services and the establishment of a Senior Dental Benefits Scheme, there has been little progress.”

 “If we’re serious about improving the wellbeing of older Australians, urgent policy and practice changes to prioritise oral health care need to be adopted,” Professor Caughey said.

The work was conducted in collaboration with the South Australian Oral Health Plan Older Person’s Working Group supported by the Hospital Research Foundation, with the findings providing further evidence of the need for a Senior Dental Benefits Scheme.