A quick survey

Oral care in aged care: 4 minutes, from the people who do it

If you work in aged care, you know how oral care actually goes on a busy shift. I'd like to hear it from you.

I'm Brayden, a dentist in NSW. I'm building a way to get dental eyes on residents without a dentist having to be in the building, and before it goes any further I want to understand the day to day from the nurses and carers doing it.

This takes about 4 minutes. I don't ask for your name or your facility, and please leave individual residents' details out of the written answers. Responses are stored securely in Australia and reported only in aggregate: never by person or facility, and never to an employer. If you're open to a follow-up chat, you can leave your details at the last question. That's the only place you'd identify yourself. Full details: thesmileadvisor.com/privacy

There are no wrong answers. Honest beats polished.

About you

What's your role? Required

Registered or Enrolled Nurse (RN / EN) Personal Care Worker / AIN / PCA Care Team Leader / Clinical Care Coordinator Facility or Care Manager I don't currently work in residential aged care

How long have you worked in aged care? Optional

Under 1 year 1-3 years 3-10 years 10+ years

Where's your facility? Optional

NSW: Central Coast or Hunter Elsewhere in NSW Another state or territory

Would you say you're passionate about the residents you care for? Optional

Extremely passionate Passionate Neutral Not really

How important do you think a resident's oral health is to their overall health? Optional

Extremely important Important Somewhat important Not that important

How oral care goes on your floor

Who mostly does residents' daily oral care (teeth, dentures, gums) at your facility? Optional

PCWs / AINs / PCAs RNs or ENs Residents themselves, where able It varies too much to say

On a typical shift, roughly how many of the residents who need help with oral care actually get it? Optional

All or nearly all More than half Less than half Hardly any

What gets in the way

What gets in the way of good oral care? Optional

Tick all that apply

Not enough time in the shift Residents declining or resisting care Dementia or behaviour that makes it hard Not enough training in how to do oral care (brushing, dentures) No clear pathway once a problem is found

Other:

How oral care is seen

A few questions people usually think twice about. Nobody can be identified from these answers, and nothing here goes to an employer. Answer for how it goes on the floor generally.

Thinking about the staff you work with, which of these is closest to how oral care gets treated? Optional

Most people care about it and do it properly People care, but there isn't time to do it well It gets ticked and we move on It depends a lot on who's on

On a busy shift, how often do you think oral care gets signed off when it hasn't really been done? Optional

(Everyone who's worked a short-staffed shift has a view on this.)

Never that I've seen Now and then Fairly often Most shifts

If a box gets ticked for oral care that didn't actually happen, how do you see it? Optional

It's never okay I get why it happens, but it's not okay It's just the reality of a busy shift It doesn't bother me

Spotting problems

When did you last have any training or a refresher on oral care, including how to spot problems? Optional

In the last year 1-3 years ago Longer ago than that Never had any

How confident do you feel spotting early dental problems (decay, gum disease, infection) when you look in a resident's mouth? Optional

Very confident Fairly confident Not very confident Not confident at all

How do dental problems usually come to light at your facility? Optional

Tick all that apply

The resident tells us it hurts We notice it during oral care They stop eating, or eat less A family member raises it Usually only once it's already bad

Getting to a dentist

Once a dental problem is noticed, how long does it usually take for the resident to see a dentist? Optional

Within a week A few weeks A month or more Only once it becomes urgent (pain, infection, not eating)

Does a dentist or oral health therapist visit your facility? Optional

Every month Every 6 months Once a year Only when we call them in No, residents have to go out to a clinic

Assessments

When a new resident arrives, does anyone check their mouth or teeth as part of admission? Optional

Yes, every admission Sometimes No Not sure

After admission, how often does a resident's mouth or teeth actually get assessed? Optional

Every 6 months or more often About once a year Only when there's a problem Never that I've seen

When a resident's mouth or teeth get assessed, who usually does it? Optional

An RN or EN A PCW, AIN or PCA A visiting dentist or oral health therapist No one really does assessments here

What gets written down

How does oral care get documented at your facility? Optional

Tick all that apply

Ticked off as a task in our electronic care system (e.g. Leecare, AutumnCare, Manad Plus) It's in the resident's care plan but not charted each shift Written in progress notes, usually only when there's a problem It's not consistently documented

If a resident wears dentures, could you tell from their notes? Optional

Yes, it's recorded Sometimes You'd have to ask someone who knows them We often don't know at all

Here's the idea I'm exploring. I'd love your honest reaction.

Picture an app on the facility's phone or tablet that shows you a resident's dental status at a glance:

their risk of dental disease, high to low, so you know who needs to be seen more often

whether they wear a denture

the daily clean: one tap to mark it done, or that the resident didn't consent that day

anyone on the team can take the photos, with no need to know what dental disease looks like: a single photo when a resident is in pain, or a few guided photos twice a year

a registered dentist reviews them and sends back tailored advice: how to care for that resident's mouth, which products cut their risk of decay, and whether they should see a dentist or an oral health therapist

What's your first reaction, doubts included? Optional

(Be blunt. This is the most useful answer on the form.)

Usefulness rating

How useful would that be in your facility? Required

Very useful Somewhat useful Not very useful Not useful at all I'd need to see it working to say

Phones, tablets and photos

Do you have a device in your facility, like a shared tablet or phone, that could take these photos? Optional

Yes Yes, but the cameras are unreliable No Not sure

Does your facility already take photos of residents for care reasons, like wounds or skin? Optional

Yes, that's normal here Sometimes No Not sure

Realistic timing, and what would matter

Realistically, when in a shift could photos like this get done? Optional

Tick all that apply

During morning personal care During evening care Only if someone came in specifically to do it Honestly, there's no room in the shift

If your facility trialled something like this, which ONE of these would matter most to you? Optional

It takes under 5 minutes per resident A registered dentist reviews the photos, not software Clear advice on what to do next Management giving us the time to do it

Other:

Wrapping up

Anything else you'd like to say? Optional

Suggestions, frustrations, ideas. Whatever's on your mind.

Would you be open to a 5-10 minute chat about your experience? It's a research chat. There's nothing to buy. Optional

Yes, happy to chat No thanks

This one's for people working in residential aged care right now. Thanks all the same.

Thank you. Every response shapes what gets built, and what doesn't.
If you left your details, I'll be in touch within a week or two.

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Brayden Weber, dentist, NSW