Dr. Albert Guay’s November JADA article, "Access to Dental Care," provides a useful model for describing the factors to be considered in dealing with the access-to-care issue. Of particular importance are the demand-for-care component and its foremost feature, the perceived need for care.
The public will generally find a way to acquire what is perceived to be of importance and desirable. We, the dental profession, can do something about this by changing the way we talk about dental caries and periodontal disease. We must begin to change the specific words and phrases used when referring to dental caries and periodontal infections. Our use of the term "decay" is not only scientifically inaccurate, but also misleads the public and other health professionals as to the nature and importance of the disease. Similar misnomers are frequently used in reference to periodontal disease.
As the public, other health professionals and legislators change their perceptions regarding oral/dental health care, we will see a significant increase in the desire and demand for care. We will also find it easier to get support and cooperation for access-to-care initiatives. The "Framework for Action" described in the 2000 U.S. surgeon general’s report on oral health1 recognized the importance of dealing with the perceptions of the public, policy-makers and health care providers as an initial prerequisite to improving oral health.
A good place to start would be for the ADA to produce a patient flier describing and illustrating dental caries as the infectious disease it is, and the range of treatments and preventive measures that are now used by practitioners. It should be the product of a collaboration of the various ADA councils and consultants, and one part of a broad-based initiative to change generally held perceptions related to oral disease and health. This would be made available through the ADA catalog. The ADA has both the talent and capacity to lead a change in how caries and periodontal diseases are perceived. We only need to decide to do it.
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