aged care dentistry Archives - Bite Magazine

Dr Diep Ha is on a mission critical

Editor — Sun, 04 May 2025 23:54:32 +0000

From exploring early childhood interventions to better care for aged care patients, Dr Diep Ha’s research reaches across life stages in the search for better oral health outcomes for the most vulnerable. By Shane Conroy Dr Diep Ha has dedicated her career to understanding and addressing oral health disparities among vulnerable populations. Her recent recognition […]

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Needless hospital admissions for seniors as government refuses to fund their dental care

Editor — Tue, 18 Mar 2025 22:26:17 +0000

The Australian Dental Association (ADA) is concerned the government’s refusal to fund basic dental care for older Australians is costing them dearly in good oral health, while also wasting millions of taxpayer dollars from unnecessary hospitalisations of seniors. The ADA has found a staggering 16,000 seniors were admitted to hospital for urgent treatment of painful dental […]

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Diabetes and tooth loss together worsen cognitive decline

Editor — Tue, 14 Mar 2023 23:34:10 +0000

Having both diabetes and tooth loss contributes to worse cognitive function and faster cognitive decline in older adults, according to a US study published in the Journal of Dental Research. Diabetes is a known risk factor for cognitive decline and dementia. Several of the hallmarks of diabetes—high blood sugar, insulin resistance, inflammation, and related heart disease—are thought to […]

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Study reveals prevalence of eating problems in the elderly

Editor — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 23:29:36 +0000

Eating problems are common among older home care clients, a new study from Finnish researchers shows. Nearly 30 per cent of the 250 older care clients studied reported poor appetite, 20 per cent had problems with chewing, 14 per cent had problems with swallowing, and nearly 20 per cent reported eating problems related to teeth […]

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Dentists hopeful that new government will try to fix oral health of nation’s elderly

Editor — Sun, 29 May 2022 23:57:02 +0000

There is every reason to be optimistic that the new Labor government will work with the nation’s peak dental body to fix the broken dental system for people in aged care, says the Australian Dental Association. Labor promised in a letter written before polling day that it would work with the ADA to improve training […]

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Why does the oral health of the nation’s grandparents matter so little?

Editor — Sun, 15 May 2022 23:40:56 +0000

Malnutrition, social isolation and declining general health are some of the serious impacts of not maintaining a healthy mouth—and this is never more so than with older Australians in aged care, says the Australian Dental Association. Data from its Australian Oral Health Survey has found: 32 per cent of those aged 55-74 years and 25 […]

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An aspirational plan to fix the dental system but …

Editor — Sun, 24 Apr 2022 22:32:00 +0000

The Australian Dental Association has congratulated the Greens for addressing the seismic inadequacy in our dental health system.But it says that Adam Bandt’s dental pitch which will cost $8 bn a year or $77bn over a decade to provide Medicare funded dental services, will be a challenge for any government to implement. “While we applaud […]

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ADA offers solutions to fix a broken dental system

Editor — Mon, 18 Apr 2022 21:58:12 +0000

The election presents a golden opportunity to remedy the enormous mess that the nation’s dental system is in, the Australian Dental Association says. The peak body for dentists has a number of remedies on its election wish list to fix the system and is putting these to the major political parties for their pre-election consideration. […]

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ADA accuses government of not taking seriously Australia’s oral health

Editor — Tue, 05 Apr 2022 00:41:12 +0000

The Australian Dental Association has expressed dismay that the nation’s oral health seems to be of no importance to the Morrison government with scant mention of it made in the 2022 pre-election budget. The concern is that failing to address the declining oral health of many older, poor and disadvantaged Australians suggests it won’t be […]

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The 2022 federal budget gives older Australians nothing to smile about

Editor — Sun, 03 Apr 2022 23:19:18 +0000

Yet again the federal budget has failed to deliver on Australia’s Silent Shame—the much overdue oral health care needs of our ageing/older Australians, claims the chair of the Older Person’s Working Group. The concern is the most vulnerable have been neglected—elderly Australians living in residential care who are too frail to attend a dental provider […]

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Social isolation among older adults linked to having fewer teeth

Editor — Sun, 23 Jan 2022 22:29:59 +0000

Older adults who are socially isolated are more likely to have missing teeth—and to lose their teeth more quickly over time—than those with more social interaction, according to a new study of Chinese older adults led by a team in the US. The findings are published in Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology. “Our study suggests […]

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Mitigating the effects of medicines on oral health in the elderly

Editor — Mon, 04 Oct 2021 22:45:52 +0000

In an article in this month’s edition of Australian Prescriber, dental experts Drs Alan Deutsch and Emma Jay look at the effect of medicines on oral health in frail older people, and provide six ways this can be improved. Poor oral health can lead to poor general health. Dental and gum infections can affect other organs […]

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Aged care dentistry

Editor — Sun, 12 Sep 2021 00:25:12 +0000

With an ageing population, the importance of good dental care for those in aged care facilities has become a priority. By Lynne Testoni There has been a huge focus on aged care in Australia recently, particularly after the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, but the issue of dental care for residents of […]

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ADA NSW says budget neglects oral care for older Australians

Editor — Wed, 12 May 2021 00:07:59 +0000

Older Australians will continue to endure unnecessary pain and an increased risk of life-threatening conditions due to a lack of funding for much needed oral health in this year’s budget, according to the NSW branch of the Australian Dental Association. More than six out of 10 over-75s in Australia suffer from gum disease, while more […]

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Royal commission into aged care supports key ADA recommendations

Editor — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 22:59:07 +0000

The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety has included a number of key Australian Dental Association recommendations for dramatically overhauling the delivery of oral health care in its final report released by the Government last week. The Government outlined a five-year road map to fix the broken aged care system, starting with an extra $425m for the […]

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ADA supports dental benefits scheme for seniors

Editor — Sun, 01 Nov 2020 23:14:44 +0000

In order to turn the tide on poor oral health in aged care, the proposal by the counsel assisting the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety to introduce a Senior Dental Benefits Scheme must be given serious consideration by the commissioners, says the Australian Dental Association. The ADA is pleased the royal commission has agreed […]

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Dentists warn older Australians at risk unless oral care improved

Editor — Sun, 19 Jul 2020 23:43:28 +0000

Millions of older Australians will continue to risk developing chronic and life-threatening diseases and suffer unnecessarily unless current oral care health services are transformed, the Australian Dental Association NSW has warned. A Medicare-funded oral health check-up for over-75s, ensuring access to toothbrushes, denture cleaning and daily oral hygiene measures and improved dental health education for […]

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Dentists call to stop the rot in older Australians’ oral health

Editor — Wed, 15 Jul 2020 01:07:21 +0000

A number of recommendations are to be presented by the Australian Dental Association NSW Branch (ADA NSW) to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety this Thursday (16 July)—the aim being to help curb the widespread and unacceptable neglect of older Australians’ oral care. ADA NSW is urging the Government to introduce: medicare-funded oral […]

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An age-old problem: The oral health of the elderly

Editor — Sat, 10 Aug 2019 01:29:48 +0000

Hopes were high for a government program designed to train aged-care nurses to better manage oral health in the elderly. So a decade on, have things improved? Cameron Cooper reports Checking the teeth and oral hygiene of older people living in residential care, Jayne Braunsteiner doesn’t like what she sees. Oral thrush. Teeth and dentures […]

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Aged-care dentistry—improvement needed

Editor — Sun, 16 Dec 2018 23:54:22 +0000

As a new royal commission investigates the aged-care industry, dental experts are warning of a potential ‘dental Armageddon’ for Australia’s ageing population. Shane Conroy reports Dr Peter Foltyn is a consulting dentist at St Vincent’s Hospital and a passionate advocate for oral healthcare for the elderly. He tells the story of an 81-year-old dementia patient […]

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ADOHTA campaigns for aged oral care integration

Editor — Thu, 03 Mar 2016 03:00:14 +0000

The Australian Dental and Oral Health Therapists Association (ADOHTA) are showing their support for calls to assist aged care facilities with staff to meet oral health needs. Aged care representatives are calling on the federal government to take steps to both attract new staff and improve staff retention. ADHOTA is hopeful that staff increases could […]

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DHAA launches education pack for aged care

Editor — Thu, 27 Jun 2013 21:02:35 +0000

The Dental Hygienists’ Association of Australia Inc. has launched a portfolio of education material designed to assist in improving the oral health of older people living in residential care facilities. The Oral Health for Those Who Care package was produced in collaboration with the University of Adelaide’s School of Dentistry. It contains documents and DVDs […]

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