Abstract
Strategic planning and implementation of oral health care and disease prevention programmes after the 1990/91 Gulf war are discussed. The key concept was to develop access to care and disease prevention for all Kuwaiti children in government kindergarten/primary schools and to eliminate emphasis on extractions and restorations. Resources were restored to pre-war levels and then increased. Prevention programmes for 150 000 children were established. Prevention funds increased from 7% to 20% of the oral health budget. Prevention-based dentists increased from 9.7% to 28.0% of staff. Rising caries trends were stabilized or reduced by up to 36.8%. Percentage of caries-free primary dentition in children increased up to 37.6%, permanent dentition up to 27.0%. A dentistry school was established.
Publication types
-
Evaluation Study
-
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
-
Child
-
Child, Preschool
-
DMF Index
-
Dental Care for Children / organization & administration*
-
Dental Caries / epidemiology
-
Dental Caries / prevention & control*
-
Dentists / supply & distribution
-
Dentists / trends
-
Health Expenditures / trends
-
Health Planning / organization & administration*
-
Health Promotion / organization & administration
-
Health Services Accessibility / organization & administration
-
Health Services Research
-
Humans
-
Kuwait / epidemiology
-
National Health Programs / organization & administration*
-
Oral Health
-
Organizational Objectives
-
Outcome Assessment, Health Care
-
Preventive Dentistry / organization & administration*
-
Primary Prevention / organization & administration
-
Program Development
-
Program Evaluation
-
School Health Services / organization & administration*
-
Warfare