Dental Pilot Projects

Overview

Dental pilot projects offer a unique opportunity to address health disparities and create more equitable oral health care delivery systems by testing innovative ways to improve oral health practice, workforce, and access. In Oregon, we have a law that allows dental pilot projects to be in operation. Senate Bill 738 (passed by the Oregon State Legislature in 2011) allows the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to approve and monitor dental pilot projects and ensure patient safety.

Dental pilot projects are community driven and intentionally designed to increase access to dental care for communities of color and other populations which evidence-based studies have shown to have the highest dental disease rates and the least access to dental care. Strategies to included in dental pilot projects include:

• Teaching new skills to existing dental providers;

• Developing new categories of dental providers;

• Accelerating the training of existing dental providers; or

• Teaching new oral health care roles to untrained people.

To contact Oregon’s Dental Pilot Project Program Coordinator, email sarah.e.kowalski@oha.oregon.gov or text/voice at 971-320-0108.

Completed Projects

Three dental pilot projects were approved:

• Dental Pilot Project #100 – Oregon Tribes Dental Health Aide Therapist Pilot Project

• Dental Pilot Project #200 – Training Dental Hygienists to Place Interim Therapeutic Restorations
  

• Dental Pilot Project #300 – Dental Therapist Project: Dental Hygiene Model
  
  

Patient Safety

OHA Roles and Responsibilities

The OHA is responsible for monitoring approved dental pilot projects to ensure patient safety and to determine the progress of each project in meeting its stated objectives and complying with program statutes and rules. Monitoring and evaluation efforts include, but are not limited to:

• Reviewing progress reports

• Conducting site visits (including chart review)

The OHA collaborates with a robust group of dental professionals around Oregon to ensure patient safety by reviewing progress reports and attending site visits.

Advisory Committees

Additionally, the OHA may convene an Advisory Committee for each approved dental pilot project. Each committee provides the OHA with the collective knowledge, experience, expertise, and insight of committee members to assist the OHA in meeting its responsibilities. Committee members are asked to review and provide advice on:

• The efficacies of training, competencies, and data collection;
  

• Project protocols related to the ongoing assurance of patient safety;

• Evaluation of project progress reports as needed; and

• Other project issues as needed throughout the duration of each pilot project.