Center for Integrative Global Oral Health, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Department of Oral Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Zimbabwe, Avondale, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Int Dent J. 2024 Aug;74(4):722-729. doi: 10.1016/j.identj.2024.01.020. Epub 2024 Apr 26.
The prioritisation of oral health in all health policies in the WHO African region is gaining momentum. Dental schools in this region are key stakeholders in informing the development and subsequent downstream implementation and monitoring of these policies. The objectives of our study are to determine how dental schools contribute to oral health policies (OHPs) in this region, to identify the barriers to and facilitators for engaging with other local stakeholders, and to understand their capacity to respond to population and public health needs.
We developed a needs assessment survey, including quantitative and qualitative questions. The survey was developed electronically in Qualtrics and distributed by email in February 2023 to the deans or other designees at dental schools in the WHO African region. Data were analysed in SAS version 9.4 and ATLAS.ti.
The capacity for dental schools to respond to population and public health needs varied. Most schools have postgraduate programs to train the next generation of researchers. However, these programs have limitations that may hinder the students from achieving the necessary skills and training. A majority (75%) of respondents were aware of the existence of national OHPs and encountered a myriad of challenges when engaging with them, including a lack of coordination with other stakeholders, resources, and oral health professionals, and the low priority given to oral health. Their strengths as technical experts and researchers was a common facilitator for engaging with OHPs.
Dental schools in the region face common challenges and facilitators in engaging in the OHP process. There were several school-specific research and training capacities that enabled them to respond to population and public health needs. Overall, shared challenges and facilitators can inform stakeholder dialogues at a national and subnational level and help develop tailored solutions for enhancing the oral health policy pipeline.
在世界卫生组织非洲区域的所有卫生政策中优先考虑口腔健康的工作正在取得进展。该区域的牙科学院是为这些政策的制定以及随后的下游实施和监测提供信息的主要利益相关者。我们研究的目的是确定该区域的牙科学院如何为口腔健康政策（OHP）做出贡献，确定与其他当地利益相关者合作的障碍和促进因素，并了解其应对人口和公共卫生需求的能力。
我们开发了一份需求评估调查，包括定量和定性问题。该调查是在 Qualtrics 中以电子方式开发的，并于 2023 年 2 月通过电子邮件分发给世界卫生组织非洲区域牙科学院的院长或其他指定人员。数据在 SAS 版本 9.4 和 ATLAS.ti 中进行分析。
牙科学院应对人口和公共卫生需求的能力各不相同。大多数学校都有研究生课程来培训下一代研究人员。然而，这些课程存在一些限制，可能会阻碍学生获得必要的技能和培训。大多数（75%）受访者意识到国家 OHP 的存在，并在参与这些计划时遇到了各种各样的挑战，包括与其他利益相关者、资源和口腔卫生专业人员缺乏协调，以及对口腔健康的重视程度低。他们作为技术专家和研究人员的优势是参与 OHP 的共同促进因素。
该区域的牙科学院在参与 OHP 过程中面临着共同的挑战和促进因素。学校有一些特定的研究和培训能力，使它们能够应对人口和公共卫生需求。总的来说，共同的挑战和促进因素可以为国家和次国家层面的利益相关者对话提供信息，并有助于制定定制的解决方案，以加强口腔健康政策渠道。
