The Ministry of Health, Division of Dental Health, Jerusalem, Israel.
The Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute, Jerusalem, Israel.
Int J Dent Hyg. 2024 May;22(2):306-312. doi: 10.1111/idh.12790. Epub 2024 Feb 26.
To learn about the use patterns of dental hygienist services, by the 65+ age group in Israel and to identify the main barriers facing different population groups.
Telephone interviews with a representative sample of 512 older adults aged 65 and over were conducted from February to April 2020.
About 50% of the older adults aged 65 and over visited a dentist (2.9 visits on average) and 35% visited a dental hygienist in the year preceding the interviews. 17% reported never visiting a dentist and 45% never received care from a dental hygienist. Dental care use rates are lower in the outlying areas of the country, among non-Jews and among those who find it difficult to cover monthly household expenses. Those who regularly visit a dental hygienist maintain a preventive oral health routine, including tooth brushing and visits to the dentist for periodic preventive check-ups. They are aware of the harmful effects of eating sweets in between meals. Most of the older adults aged 65 and over are unaware of the reform under which hygienist' care was included in the basket of services provided by health plans.
There is underutilization of dental hygienist services and lack of awareness of proper oral health behaviour in the lower socioeconomic group. As less than 50% of older adults are aware of the legal rights for dental care, there is a need to raise awareness of the reform and the services provided under it.
了解以色列 65 岁以上人群中牙科保健员服务的使用模式，并确定不同人群面临的主要障碍。
2020 年 2 月至 4 月期间，对 512 名 65 岁及以上的老年人进行了代表性的电话访谈。
约 50%的 65 岁及以上老年人看牙医（平均就诊 2.9 次），35%的老年人在接受访谈前一年看牙科保健员。17%的人从未看过牙医，45%的人从未接受过牙科保健员的护理。在该国偏远地区、非犹太人以及那些难以支付每月家庭开支的人群中，牙科保健的使用率较低。那些定期看牙科保健员的人保持着预防性口腔保健习惯，包括刷牙和定期去看牙医进行预防性检查。他们意识到在两餐之间吃甜食的危害。大多数 65 岁及以上的老年人不知道保健员的护理已被纳入健康计划提供的服务篮子这一改革。
牙科保健员服务的利用率较低，社会经济地位较低的人群对正确的口腔健康行为缺乏认识。由于不到 50%的老年人了解他们的牙科保健权益，因此有必要提高对改革及其提供的服务的认识。
