NATIONAL ORAL HEALTH PROGRAM

Background

Oral diseases qualify as major public health problems owing to their high prevalence and incidence in all regions of the world. Poor oral health may have a profound effect on general health. Inflammatory mediators in periodontal disease are not only involved in local tissue destruction but have the potential to modulate the course of cardiovascular, chronic obstructive lung, and autoimmune diseases,diabetes mellitus, and preterm birth.Poor oral health can cause poor aesthetics, affect mastication, cause agonizing pain, and lead to loss of productivity due to loss of man-hours.

Goal

To improve the oral health status of the population across all age groups by reducing the oral disease burden (incidence, prevalence,
and impact) through the provision of accessible, affordable, acceptable, appropriate, and comprehensive oral health care.

Objectives of the NOHP

1. Strengthening the oral healthcare delivery system at all levels to render promotive, preventive, curative, and rehabilitative services.
2. Providing support for generating evidence, innovations, and implementation of oral health policy to control and reduce risk factors and prevent oral diseases.
3. To build the capacity of service providers and public health facilities for the availability of skilled oral healthcare professionals and provision of essential oral healthcare services.
4. To ensure integration of oral health with relevant National programs under NHM in line with the National Health Policy and commitments under the National Oral Health Policy.
5. Identifying Centres of Excellence at National, Regional, and State levels for generating research innovations and evidence to strengthen oral health programs in the country.
6. Supporting Centres of Excellence in various activities, including capacity building of service providers in the States.
7. To ensure regular monitoring and periodic evaluation of the oral health program for improving the implementation and outcomes envisaged under NOHP.

Services Provided Under the Program

At Sub Centre

1. Oral health education to all target groups through the routine program.
2. Dedicated days in the monthly or fortnightly schedule for discussing oral health topics, e.g., MCHN day (Maternal Child Health Nutrition day).
3. Referral of patients with dental/oral diseases to the PHC (Primary Health Center) or FRU (First Referral Unit) depending on the availability of oral/dental services.
4. Prescription of medication for pain relief and other routine dental/oral problems.
5. Record keeping for reporting to the PHC (Primary Health Center).

At PHC

1. Daily OPD services by the Medical Officer (M.O).
2. Arrangement of oral health/dental camps in collaboration with other departments.
3. Maintenance of records in the prescribed format.
4. Referral to higher facilities for oral healthcare needs.

At CHC

1. Rural hospitals and Sub-district hospitals act as the first referral unit (FRU) for PHCs and below.
2. Arrangement of dental camps, e.g., in collaboration with the Education Department.
3. Maintenance of records in the prescribed format for reporting.
4. Delivering oral healthcare services to children referred from schools/RBSK (Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram)/AWW.

At District Hospital

1. Management of cases referred from CHC and PHC, provision of dentures, fracture reduction, and appointing orthodontists on a consultation basis weekly or monthly.
2. Collecting reports from PHCs/CHCs.
3. Convergence with other programs under NHM (National Health Mission) and NCD (Non-Communicable Diseases).
4. Delivering services to school children referred under RBSK (Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram).

In the state, there are 288 functional dental clinics as of today at District Hospitals (21), General Hospitals (8), Sub-district Hospitals (95), Rural Hospitals (364), Central Hospitals, and Women Hospitals (13) where dental surgeons provide dental care services such as oral cavity examination, counseling, and treatment.

NOHP Financial Information:

Sr. No	Year	PIP	Expenditure	%
1	2019-2020	451	1.65	0.38%
2	2020-2021	1487	108.20	7.3%
3	2021-2022	1832.75	1016.21	55.5%
4	2022-2023	1417	95.53	6.7%
5	2023-2024	1071	858.04	80.11%
6	April 2024 to December 2024	133.88	25.73	19.22%

Beneficiary:

mentioned above

Benefits:

mentioned above