Speakers: Dr. Leonard Brennan, Denise O’Connell and Dr. Jennifer Crittenden.
About the speakers:
Dr. Leonard Brennan, DMD, serves as a faculty member in Harvard’s Department of Oral Health Policy and Epidemiology and holds the position of Geriatric Adviser for the university’s National Center for Equitable Care for Elders. He is past Co-Director of the Geriatric Fellowship Program at Harvard School of Dental Medicine and collaborated with Harvard’s Departments of Integrative Medicine and Global Health. Dr. Brennan has been both a Mentor and Geriatric Specialist for Harvard’s Nurse Practitioner-Dental Interprofessional Model and the Oral Health Workforce for Rural and Vulnerable Populations. Additionally, he has served as the Geriatric Specialist and lead for the program Predoctoral Oral Health Education and Training for an Aging America. He has also advised the American Dental Association on issues related to older adult health.
Denise O’Connell, MSW, LCSW, CCM is the Associate Director of the Lunder-Dineen Health Education Alliance of Maine, a program of Massachusetts Hospital. She is a licensed clinical social worker and a certified case manager. She has been a principal with the program since 2011. Prior professional experiences include practicing across health care settings serving in both clinical and leadership capacities. At Lunder-Dineen, she has served as an on the ground presence for the organization, building relationships with stakeholders while also coaching program site teams towards program implementation. She has presented nationally, regionally and locally and is a co-author of published scholarly articles on Lunder-Dineen programs. She is a Past President of the Maine Chapter, Society for Social Work Leadership in Health Care and two-time recipient of their Social Work Leader of the Year Award. She currently serves on the board of Unlimited Solutions, is a member of the Maine Nurse Action Coalition, a member of the two statewide Maine alcohol prevention workgroups. She is a past member of AgingME.
Dr. Jennifer Crittenden is an assistant professor in the UMaine School of Social Work and the Associate Director for Research at the University of Maine Center on Aging. Dr. Crittenden has over nineteen years of experience in professional and community education, program evaluation, applied research, and program planning. Research and grant-funded programs under her direction focus on the translation of empirical research into professional and public education programs, events, and dissemination activities. Her experience in healthcare research and evaluation includes a variety of initiatives aimed at prevention and quality improvement across the care continuum. Dr. Crittenden has served as a lead evaluator and an advisor for interprofessional oral health initiatives across care settings including the MOTIVATE program educating long-term care staff and MOTIVATE at Home providing oral health education and support for care partners of older Mainers.
About the seminar:
The burden of oral disease and its connection to poor overall health and quality of life represents a significant public health challenge for older adults. Approximately 1.2 million adults aged 65 and older reside in nursing home facilities with the majority of older adults (70%) requiring some type of long-term care (LTC) during their lifetime. For those living in LTC (long term care), performing daily activities, such as tooth brushing, dressing, and eating, often requires assistance. Poor oral health has been linked to systemic health issues, including heart disease, diabetes, respiratory infections, and Alzheimer’s disease, highlighting the critical connection between oral hygiene and physical health. Older adults living in nursing homes and post-acute care facilities face significant oral health risks and disparities in connection with poor oral and physical health outcomes. Many healthcare team members receive little to no formal education on oral health assessments, evidence-based care guidelines, or interprofessional, team-based oral health practices. Prior research has demonstrated that oral health education can reduce mouth pain, improve chewing ability, decrease social isolation, and help manage systemic diseases. This seminar will discuss the established linkages between oral health and overall health for older adults, describe the MOTIVATE program, an innovative interprofessional oral health education initiative aimed at improving oral health care for older adults in long-term care and community settings, and review evaluation data and implications.
The event is free to attend and will take place on zoom. Register here!
