HJLR May/Jun 2019

Healthcare Journal of LITTLE ROCK I  MAY / JUN 2019 13 Chief Editor Smith W. Hartley How is Delta Dental working to integrate oral health in the overall healthcare discussion, and how do you see it improving patient care/ outcomes? Ed Choate We are excited about a new pro- gram which will integrate medical care for children provided by physician offices with oral health education/evaluation, preven- tive care, and referral to a dental home. Typ- ically, a mom and her infant child will visit a primary care provider’s (PCP) office 8–10 times before they see a dentist. If the child is at high risk for caries (tooth decay), and the first visit to a dentist is not until age three or four, that child could already be suffering from advanced and painful decay in several teeth. That problem can be largely avoided by simple training of medical practice staff members on oral health education, preven- tive measures, and referral to a dentist. Delta Dental, along with our partner orga- nization, Altarum, is launching a pilot pro- gram to train 100 PCPs in ten counties in Arkansas on how to do an oral health evalu- ation and risk assessment; provide simple oral health hygiene education for mom and her baby; and then apply a fluoride varnish on erupted teeth. It only takes a few min- utes, and the fluoride varnish is reimburs- able by Medicaid. We realize PCP offices are very busy and time is precious, but this small step could be the beginning of a cav- ity-free life for a child. The next step is referring the mom and child to a dentist who treats infants and tod- dlers. That referral will lead to the establish- ment of a dental home for the young patient, and possibly the entire family. A dental home establishes an ongoing relationship between the dentist and the patient, and provides comprehensive oral healthcare to include anticipatory guidance and preven- tive, acute, and appropriate referrals for the patient. Hopefully, this will also lead to on- going communication between medical and dental providers that will improve overall care and health outcomes for the patient. After this initial pilot, we will evalu- ate what we learned, make modifications to improve the process for PCP offices, their patients, and dental referrals. The next phase will broaden the project to 300 PCPs statewide to expand the integration of medical and dental services. Once that phase is completed, we will assess the proj- ect again, make further refinements, and determine next steps to include more pro- viders statewide. Editor Delta Dental’s mission is to improve the oral health of all Arkansans. What are you doing to fulfill your mission? Choate Delta Dental works to improve the oral health of all Arkansans in three ways. First, we offer affordable access to dentists who provide the care their patients and our members need through dental insurance, which is selected by employees inmore than 3,700 Arkansas businesses who offer Delta Dental as part of their benefit package, or by individuals and families purchasing cover- age directly from us. Collectively, we have over 525,000members inArkansas with our commercial insurance. Second, we were honored to be selected as an administrator of the Arkansas Med- icaid Dental program beginning in January 2018, enabling us to serve approximately 300,000 of our fellow Arkansans (mostly children) in the program. It is called Delta Dental Smiles because we want to remove any stigma from being a Medicaid benefi- ciary. Their plan is just like everyone else’s dental insurance—in fact, for kids, it is better than most. If they need assistance setting an appointment or with transportation to their dentist appointment, we are happy to help. Finally, we understand that many peo- ple cannot afford to purchase dental insur- ance, and they are also not eligible for Med- icaid benefits. In 2008, we formed the Delta Dental of Arkansas Foundation (DDARF), and each year we donate 30 percent of our net income from operations to DDARF