Acute hospital admission provides an excellent opportunity to address poor oral health in older people, a group rarely seen by dental professionals and for who oral health activity in hospital is inconsistent and generally suboptimal.
This two-part article explores oral hygiene and mouth care provision for older adults in acute hospitals. The first article presented the findings of a literature review exploring oral and dental disease in older adults, the importance of good oral health and mouth care, and the current situation. The second article explores clinical recommendations.
A change in philosophy is needed to embed oral care as an essential component of holistic practice. More research is needed to determine the best ways to assess and treat oro-dental problems in older people, and promote and restore their oral health in hospitals. Great potential exists to innovate and develop new ways of providing care to this group.
Nursing Older People. 29, 10, 20-25. doi: 10.7748/nop.2017.e947b
Correspondence Peer reviewThis article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software
Conflict of interestNone declared
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Received: 21 April 2017
Accepted: 08 August 2017
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