Filling The Gap

Education videos for oral health professionals.

Be aware this is an educational video aimed at health care professionals. The information and scenes within this video may be upsetting to some viewers.

Some oral health professionals may feel uncomfortable about providing oral health care to people with an intellectual disability. Some of the reasons for this include the inability to manage behaviours of concern in the dental setting, complex medical conditions and polypharmacy, and the complexity of multiple disabilities in some individuals.

DHSV developed these videos to provide oral health professionals with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to increase their confidence in providing oral health care to people with an intellectual disability.

This film aims to dispel the myth that people with intellectual disability are hard to treat and portrays a number of dentists and specialists providing oral health care to individuals with an intellectual disability, in a dental setting.

The facts are that people with an intellectual disability:

• Have worse oral health than the general public
• Have more health problems in general
• Experience greater barriers in accessing health care
• Are less likely to be offered preventive health measures
• Are often less equipped to communicate oral discomfort

These health issues are compounded by communication and cognitive difficulties. The International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disability (IASSID) has recommended annual dental examinations for people with an intellectual disability.

(Please note: you will need access to YouTube to view these videos.)