Oral Care Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Black/African American Caregivers of Autistic Children and Non-Autistic Children
Oral health is a vital component of overall health. Children from underserved, minoritized populations (i.e., Black/African Americans, autistic children) are at even greater risk for experiencing oral health disparities. This study aims to illuminate the oral health knowledge, attitudes, and practic...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-09-01
|
| Series: | Children |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/9/1417 |
| _version_ | 1797489864629813248 |
|---|---|
| author | Dominique H. Como Lucía I. Floríndez-Cox Leah I. Stein Duker Jose C. Polido Brandi P. Jones Mary Lawlor Sharon A. Cermak |
| author_facet | Dominique H. Como Lucía I. Floríndez-Cox Leah I. Stein Duker Jose C. Polido Brandi P. Jones Mary Lawlor Sharon A. Cermak |
| author_sort | Dominique H. Como |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Oral health is a vital component of overall health. Children from underserved, minoritized populations (i.e., Black/African Americans, autistic children) are at even greater risk for experiencing oral health disparities. This study aims to illuminate the oral health knowledge, attitudes, and practices of Black/African American caregivers of autistic and non-autistic children. Black/African American caregivers of children (4-to-14 years) on the autism spectrum (<i>n</i> = 65) or not on the autism spectrum (<i>n</i> = 60), participated in a survey, with input from literature reviews, interviews, previous research, and reviews by experts. Caregivers demonstrated basic knowledge of oral health with significantly lower scores for caregivers of autistic children. Caregivers care about oral health and would like to increase their knowledge. Significant differences in oral care practices were found between the autistic and non-autistic groups. Caregivers reported they can access dental services with relative ease, including finding their child a dentist, scheduling a dental appointment, and accessing transportation (personal or public) to attend the visit. Black/African American caregivers of autistic children and children without autism seem to have foundational knowledge about oral health and basic practices; however, they are interested in learning more. Therefore, tailored oral health education programs may help mitigate oral health disparities for Black/African American families. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:22:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-54755bf60e9a4e2bb4855365ddd4da4d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-9067 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:22:43Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Children |
| spelling | doaj.art-54755bf60e9a4e2bb4855365ddd4da4d2023-11-23T15:38:44ZengMDPI AGChildren2227-90672022-09-0199141710.3390/children9091417Oral Care Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Black/African American Caregivers of Autistic Children and Non-Autistic ChildrenDominique H. Como0Lucía I. Floríndez-Cox1Leah I. Stein Duker2Jose C. Polido3Brandi P. Jones4Mary Lawlor5Sharon A. Cermak6Mrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USANursing Research and Performance Improvement Department, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USAMrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USAUSC Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90027, USAUSC Race & Equity Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USAMrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USAMrs. T.H. Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USAOral health is a vital component of overall health. Children from underserved, minoritized populations (i.e., Black/African Americans, autistic children) are at even greater risk for experiencing oral health disparities. This study aims to illuminate the oral health knowledge, attitudes, and practices of Black/African American caregivers of autistic and non-autistic children. Black/African American caregivers of children (4-to-14 years) on the autism spectrum (<i>n</i> = 65) or not on the autism spectrum (<i>n</i> = 60), participated in a survey, with input from literature reviews, interviews, previous research, and reviews by experts. Caregivers demonstrated basic knowledge of oral health with significantly lower scores for caregivers of autistic children. Caregivers care about oral health and would like to increase their knowledge. Significant differences in oral care practices were found between the autistic and non-autistic groups. Caregivers reported they can access dental services with relative ease, including finding their child a dentist, scheduling a dental appointment, and accessing transportation (personal or public) to attend the visit. Black/African American caregivers of autistic children and children without autism seem to have foundational knowledge about oral health and basic practices; however, they are interested in learning more. Therefore, tailored oral health education programs may help mitigate oral health disparities for Black/African American families.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/9/1417autismAfrican Americansoral healthhealth equitychildren |
| spellingShingle | Dominique H. Como Lucía I. Floríndez-Cox Leah I. Stein Duker Jose C. Polido Brandi P. Jones Mary Lawlor Sharon A. Cermak Oral Care Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Black/African American Caregivers of Autistic Children and Non-Autistic Children Children autism African Americans oral health health equity children |
| title | Oral Care Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Black/African American Caregivers of Autistic Children and Non-Autistic Children |
| title_full | Oral Care Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Black/African American Caregivers of Autistic Children and Non-Autistic Children |
| title_fullStr | Oral Care Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Black/African American Caregivers of Autistic Children and Non-Autistic Children |
| title_full_unstemmed | Oral Care Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Black/African American Caregivers of Autistic Children and Non-Autistic Children |
| title_short | Oral Care Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Black/African American Caregivers of Autistic Children and Non-Autistic Children |
| title_sort | oral care knowledge attitudes and practices of black african american caregivers of autistic children and non autistic children |
| topic | autism African Americans oral health health equity children |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/9/9/1417 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT dominiquehcomo oralcareknowledgeattitudesandpracticesofblackafricanamericancaregiversofautisticchildrenandnonautisticchildren AT luciaiflorindezcox oralcareknowledgeattitudesandpracticesofblackafricanamericancaregiversofautisticchildrenandnonautisticchildren AT leahisteinduker oralcareknowledgeattitudesandpracticesofblackafricanamericancaregiversofautisticchildrenandnonautisticchildren AT josecpolido oralcareknowledgeattitudesandpracticesofblackafricanamericancaregiversofautisticchildrenandnonautisticchildren AT brandipjones oralcareknowledgeattitudesandpracticesofblackafricanamericancaregiversofautisticchildrenandnonautisticchildren AT marylawlor oralcareknowledgeattitudesandpracticesofblackafricanamericancaregiversofautisticchildrenandnonautisticchildren AT sharonacermak oralcareknowledgeattitudesandpracticesofblackafricanamericancaregiversofautisticchildrenandnonautisticchildren |