Journal of Disability and Oral Health

cover art

Cover Date:
March 2008
Print ISSN:
1470-8558
Electronic ISSN:
1754-2758
Vol:
9
Issue:
1

Prisoner and lay opinions of a prison-issue oral health kit

Abstract Research in prison populations has revealed poor oral health. In some cases prisoners have attributed their poor oral hygiene to the prison issue oral health kit of toothbrush and toothpaste. Aim: To describe the views of a prisoner population and a non-prison or lay population on the prison-issue oral health kit. Method: Prisoners’ views on the prison issue oral health kit from a previous study by the same researchers were compared with those of a group of lay people. The sample size of lay people (48) was determined by the number of oral health kits made available by HMP Brixton. Lay participants were provided with an oral health kit containing one standard, prison issue toothbrush and a 50ml tube of toothpaste (1,000ppm F). They were invited to use them twice daily for a period of one week. A simple, eight-item questionnaire, based on the findings of the earlier prisoner study, was constructed to evaluate the lay population’s views on the prison-issue oral health kit. Results: It was found that 81% of prisoners (99) and 66.7% (32) of lay people disliked the toothbrush. The toothpaste was disliked by 70% (85) of the prison population and 58.3% (28) of the lay group. Conclusion: Prisoners had a more negative view of both the prison issue toothbrush and the toothpaste than did the lay population. However, the majority of prisoner and lay group members considered that the brush and paste were of poor quality. Improving the quality of the prison-issue toothbrush and toothpaste may improve prisoners’ motivation regarding oral health and hygiene and so influence their motivation and ability to clean effectively.

Key words: Prisoners, oral health, toothbrush and toothpaste

Article Price
£15.00
Institution Article Price
£15.00
Page Start
35
Page End
41
Authors
Janice Fiske, Chris Dickinson, E Heidari

Articles from this issue

  • Title
  • Pg. Start
  • Pg. End

  1. Editorial
  2. 2
  3. 2

  1. An investigation into the oral health status of male prisoners in the UK
  2. 3
  3. 12

  1. Extensive dental caries in unerupted permanent teeth of a disabled child with phenytoin-induced gingival overgrowth
  2. 13
  3. 16

  1. Current concepts in the pathogenesis and management of oral mucositis as a complication of cancer therapy
  2. 17
  3. 23

  1. Factors influencing the decision to perform dental treatment under general anaesthesia in children with intellectual disability
  2. 27
  3. 30

  1. Dental management of a child with Congenital Rubella Syndrome
  2. 31
  3. 34

  1. Prisoner and lay opinions of a prison-issue oral health kit
  2. 35
  3. 41

  1. Special Care Dentistry in daily practice
  2. 42
  3. 43

  1. IADH Symposium at FDI – Dubai 2007
  2. 44
  3. 47

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