2020 NH Oral Health Forum Series

The NH Oral Health Fall Forum will be held online this year.  The Coalition is planning a four-session series with the first two sessions in November on the subject of Oral Health and Substance Use Disorder.  Details of the 3rd and 4th sessions will be posted later.

Session 1:
The Healing Power of a Smile: A Link Between Oral Care and Substance Abuse Recovery 
November 17, 2020
4:30 – 6:30 PM

Dr. Glen Hanson, DDS, PhD, professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology and School of Dentistry at the University of Utah, first named author, spoke on the results of the FLOSS (Facilitating a Lifetime of Oral Health Sustainability for Substance Use Disorder Patients and Families) research grant that showed “that those who received comprehensive dental care had a better quality of life as measured by substantial improvements in employment and drug abstinence as well as a dramatic decrease in homelessness.”  The study showed for the first time that participants who had their major oral health problems addressed by a dental professional stayed in treatment approximately two times longer and had a more than an 80 percent increase in completing their substance abuse treatment program.   Click here to access Dr. Hanson’s Bio.
View/Download Dr. Hanson’s Slide Deck

Session 2:
Addressing the Link Between Oral Health and Substance Abuse Recovery: New Hampshire Actions and Resources
November 19, 2020
4:30 – 6:30 PM
View/Download the agenda

Dr. Glen Hanson, from the University of Utah schools of Pharmacology and Toxicology, and Dentistry, returns to join a NH-based panel exploring local solutions to substance misuse screening, diagnosing, referral, and treatment through oral health and dental programs. Topics include the NH Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, NH Doorway 211 referral system, Screen and Intervene: NH SBIRT, and other resources.
Panel Members: