Oral Health: Supporting Adults Who Require Assistance

Published: May 2020
Available in English, French, Spanish
Clinical,  Older adults

Purpose and scope

The purpose of this best practice guideline (BPG) is to provide nurses, the interprofessional team and caregivers with evidence-based recommendations for the provision of oral care for adults (18 years of age and older) that will:  •    promote an interprofessional approach to providing…

The purpose of this best practice guideline (BPG) is to provide nurses, the interprofessional team and caregivers with evidence-based recommendations for the provision of oral care for adults (18 years of age and older) that will: 

•    promote an interprofessional approach to providing oral care, 
•    enhance the delivery of oral care interventions, and 
•    ultimately lead to positive oral health outcomes for persons.

This BPG focuses on providing oral care across health settings to adults (18 years and older) who require assistance with oral care in a continuum that ranges from the set-up of oral care supplies to full physical assistance with oral care. This BPG provides recommendations to support the delivery of oral care— including appropriate supervision, prompting and assistance—while still advocating for the person’s independence and autonomy.

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Guideline overview
Reference

Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO). Oral health: Supporting adults who require assistance. 2nd ed. Toronto (ON): RNAO; 2020.

Recommendations

Do you want to learn about and implement the most- up-to-date evidence-based recommendations on this topic with your colleagues? Download and share the full best practice guideline (BPG), Oral Health: Supporting Adults Who Require Assistance.
See below for a snapshot of the recommendations from this BPG. We strongly suggest you review the full BPG before implementing the recommendations and good practice statements. The BPG also includes further resources to support implementation and evaluation.  

Disclaimer: These guidelines are not binding for nurses, other health providers or the organizations that employ them. The use of these guidelines should be flexible and based on individual needs and local circumstances. They constitute neither a liability nor discharge from liability. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the contents at the time of publication, neither the authors nor the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO) gives any guarantee as to the accuracy of the information contained in them or accepts any liability with respect to loss, damage, injury or expense arising from any such errors or omission in the contents of this work.

Revision status

Current edition published: May 2020

This BPG replaces the RNAO BPG Oral Health: Nursing Assessment and Intervention (2008).

Contact

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