Young people in custody can face significant barriers to receiving timely oral health care, including delays in assessment, transport issues, and limited access to dental professionals.
Unlocking Smiles set out to determine whether virtual oral healthcare can improve access and outcomes for young people in custody in NSW. The research explored three main areas: how virtual care is applied and measured in custodial settings, the level of oral disease among young people in custody, and the performance of both in-person and remote oral health screening.
The project included three studies: A systematic review of virtual healthcare delivery in custodial settings, a retrospective study to determine the level of oral disease in young people in custody and the difference in these levels between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal young people, and a pilot study where trained non-dental staff used smartphone cameras to take photos inside a patient's mouth. Two dentists then reviewed the images remotely and compared their findings with face-to-face examinations.
Across 86 assessments, the model achieved over 90% specificity for ruling out disease, a 100% participation rate, and a 90% satisfaction rate.
