[Dental care of the elderly. An inquiry on the status of dental welfare in the old age and nursing homes as well as in the geriatric medical clinics of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Land cantons].

63 old people's and nursing homes, and 7 geriatric health clinics from the cantons of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Land were surveyed to determine their current level of dental care. The results regarding the old people's homes and nursing homes are in line with those obtained in the Franscini (1984) survey of 113 homes for the aged in Zurich: only a few isolated institutions conducted dental examinations and administered treatment, and only a few of them employed a dental hygienist to instruct and supervise the oral hygiene of the residents. A mere three geriatric health clinics and one old people's home in Basel-Stadt have a dental care unit. The nursing personnel is largely responsible for maintaining the pensioners' oral hygiene although these employees have received insufficient or no training for such work. The replies received indicate that an improvement in dental care is urgently needed, especially in the old people's homes and nursing homes, with absolute priority to be given to the promotion of oral hygiene.