Community Dental Health

cover art

Cover Date:
June 2013
Print ISSN:
0265 539X
Vol:
30
Issue:
2

Automated coaching to help parents increase their children’s brushing frequency: an exploratory trial

doi:10.1922/CDH_3035Hurling06

Advances in digital communication, such as the internet, now provide a cost effective channel to reach and help families struggling to establish good oral hygiene in their homes. This paper describes a novel internet based oral hygiene intervention whose design draws from advances in social cognitive models of behaviour change. Intervention components included role-modelling cartoons for children, a guide for parents on using rewards, a personalised plan with clear steps, tips to follow and a weekly 10-minute review of progress. Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of the online coaching programme; specifically we expected that those in the intervention group would brush their teeth more frequently during the intervention period than those in the control group. Basic research design: An exploratory trial using a randomised controlled parallel approach. Participants: Children aged 5 to 9 years from 44 families (23 control and 21 intervention). Main outcome measure: An objective monitoring of tooth brushing. Results: In the 3-week intervention period, children from families assigned to the coaching programme brushed their teeth 38% more often than those in the control group. Conclusions: The programme was effective in a number of respects. Opportunities for further research are discussed, including the need to create a more engaging system and so increase compliance.

Key words: oral hygiene, internet, behavior, pilot projects, intervention studies, cellular phone, mobile phone

Article Price
£15.00
Institution Article Price
£
Page Start
88
Page End
93
Authors
R. Hurling, J-P. Claessen, J. Nicholson, F. Schäfer, C.C. Tomlin, C.F. Lowe

Articles from this issue

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  1. Editorial - What has oral health related quality of life ever done for us?
  2. 66
  3. 67

  1. Barriers and facilitators that influence the delivery of prevention guidance in health service dental practice: A questionnaire study of practising dentists in southwest England
  2. 71
  3. 76

  1. Care home managers’ views of dental services for older people living in nursing and residential homes in inner city London
  2. 77
  3. 82

  1. High acuity GIS comparison of dentist and doctor surgery locations in Auckland, New Zealand
  2. 83
  3. 87

  1. Automated coaching to help parents increase their children’s brushing frequency: an exploratory trial
  2. 88
  3. 93

  1. Operationalisation of the construct of access to dental care: a position paper and proposed conceptual definitions
  2. 94
  3. 101

  1. Analysis of the perceived oral treatment need using Andersen’s behavioural model
  2. 102
  3. 107

  1. Caries diagnosis: agreement between WHO and ICDAS II criteria in epidemiological surveys
  2. 108
  3. 111

  1. Sociodemographic differences in oral health-related quality of life related to dental caries in Thai school children
  2. 112
  3. 118

  1. Evaluating the Provision of Oral Health Education Material in Schools in Finland
  2. 119
  3. 123

  1. Short Communication - The cross cultural adaptation and validity of the Child-OIDP scale among school children in Karnataka, South India
  2. 124
  3. 126

  1. Short Communication - Defluoridation techniques implemented by the government of Karnataka, India – the current situation
  2. 127
  3. 128