Regular dental visits are crucial for maintaining optimal oral health for our senior population. Most of our senior population often struggle with dental care due to retirement age which therefore, means no dental insurance. Reduced income means that oral health is no longer a priority despite the importance of it due to fulling other basic needs.
There are a few programs in Ottawa to help seniors who do not have dental insurance to meet their oral health need. Below are some of the programs that are available:
- In the community, there are multiple locations that will do free screenings and include a fluoride varnish application along with some dental education (Ottawa Public Health, n.d.). Some locations may even offer a free denture cleaning. The Ottawa Public Health has a monthly calendar that can be used by using the advanced search button and typing in “dental” (Ottawa Public Health, n.d.). After doing so, a few locations that offer free screenings will show. The calendar can be accessed at: https://calendars.ottawapublichealth.ca/all/month
- There are some denture benefits that can be offered to seniors. The “Essential Health and Social Supports” is for those with low-income; this program provides those in needs for health support (Ottawa, n.d.). Call 3-1-1 to apply for this program (Ottawa Public Health, n.d.). If the application gets approved, an Ottawa Public Health Clinic will offer a denture assessment.
- City Dental Clinics:
- 40 Cobourg Street (Le Patro). Tel: 613-580-9633 (Ottawa Public Health, n.d.)
- 400-1580 Merivale Road. Tel: 613-580-9631 (Ottawa Public Health, n.d.)
- Algonquin College Dental Clinic offers a full dental health assessment which includes up to four x-rays, teeth cleaning, tooth polishing, fluoride treatment, oral health education and nutritional counselling for $45 (Algonquin College, n.d.). The clinic chargers according to the “degree of difficult” and the amount of build up on teeth. This program is a cheaper alternative route for seniors to get a thorough preventive oral care.
It is important to realize how important preventive oral care is for seniors. Not only does it ensure that they have optimal oral health but also increase their quality of life. These programs are available to those seniors who do not have dental insurance and have low income. This ensures that our senior population can still receive the oral care they require.
References
Algonquin College. (n.d.). Services. Retrieved from https://www.algonquincollege.com/dental-clinic/home/pricelist/
Ottawa Public Health. (n.d.). Help paying for health services. Retrieved from https://ottawa.ca/en/residents/social-services/employment-and-financial-assistance/help-paying-health-services#dental-care
Subbotin, D. (2014, September, 10). Dental care for seniors and caregivers. House Call Dentures Services. [IMAGE]. Retrieved from http://housecalldentureservices.blogspot.com/2014/09/lets-help-granny-keep-her-teeth-senior.html
Bringing Life to Your Smile 
Hi Asmaa,
Thank you for the post! You’ve done a good job of summarizing the programs that are available in Ottawa to assist seniors to access dental care. This is a good resource for seniors and their family members or caregivers to use.
Accessing dental care is a major issue for seniors. As they enter retirement not only is their income reduced, as you mentioned, they also no longer have dental insurance through their employer. This can make it difficult for seniors to maintain their oral health.
Oral health can have a significant impact on the quality of life of the senior population. A study conducted in Japan found that tooth loss and xerostomia had an effect on the quality of life of the seniors they studied (Enoki, et al., 2014). Oral health affects how people speak, swallow, chew, etc. Poor oral health can impact the nutrition of seniors by making them unable to eat the foods they like. In extreme cases, they may even stop eating because it is too hard or painful or they may be disinterested in the foods they can eat. This is why it is very important for seniors to be able to access care so that they can prevent any issues and maintain a higher quality of life.
– Alyssa Fraser
Resource
Enoki, K., Matsuda, K., Ikebe, K., Murai, S., Yoshida, M., Maeda, Y., & Thomson, W. M. (2014). Influence of xerostomia on oral healtherelated quality of life in the elderly: a 5-year longitudinal study. Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology and Oral Radiology, 117(6), 716-721. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.oooo.2014.03.001
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Thank you for your comment Alyssa. Yes, it is extremely important for our seniors to be able to access oral care to ensure they maintain a higher quality of life. Thank you for providing that study about the impact of xerostomia on elders’ quality of life.
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