This week on A Tale of Two Hygienists, we’re digressing from our usual technical discussions to shine a light on an unpleasant but very important subject: the abuse and mistreatment some of our most vulnerable patients experience, and especially what hygienists can do to mitigate these situations.
India Chance, RDH, is a consultant for and owner of Learn2Prevent, which provides dental professionals with continued education, and also works as a trainer for the nonprofit organization Mid-Atlantic P.A.N.D.A. (Prevent Abuse and Neglect through Dental Awareness). She has worked in dentistry for the past 23 years and spent a significant portion of her career focusing on public health. India is passionate about ensuring that underserved populations receive quality care, especially victims of parental and intimate abuse, as well as victims of the sex trafficking trade.
In this episode, India discusses her role and the role of other dental professionals in identifying signs of abuse, explains how to distinguish intentionally harmful cases from accidental ones, and reveals what health care professionals do to reach out to victims of the sex trade.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:
Interview starts: 8:01
– How India became involved in both public health initiatives and child abuse awareness.
– What are Mid-Atlantic Panda’s three R’s, and why dental professionals play pivotal roles in identifying abuse.
– The reason pediatric dental offices will regularly weigh young patients.
– What it means to be a “mandatory reporter.”
– What happens if you report a potential abuse case and there doesn’t turn out to be any evidence mistreatment?
– How reporters distinguish between signs of abuse and what are most likely genuine accidents.
– Some resources and training you can use to familiarize yourself with signs of abuse and reporting protocol.
– Know that abuse and mistreatment can occur in any community regardless of how they fare socially or economically.
– The particular difficulty in trying to aid an adult patient stuck ina an abusive relationship.
– What are “shoe cards” and how they can be of assistance to victims of sex trafficking?
– Knowing the difference between a child who show behavioral signs of abuse and one who just has a fear of going to the dentist.
– Why a child having very poor teeth isn’t necessarily a sign of neglect.
– Some of India’s upcoming courses to look out for.
QUOTES:
“Through this training, we try to educate and equip dental professionals to recognize signs of abuse.”
“I made the decision to move forward because this was somebody’s family member and they needed to be safe.”
“You really have to look at the whole picture before you jump right to abuse.”
“[Abuse] knows no socioeconomic status.”
LINKS:
Learn2Prevent homepage – https://www.learn2prevent.com/
Learn2Prevent on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/Learn2Prevent/
Learn2Prevent on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/learn2prevent/
Learn2Prevent email: info@learn2prevent.com
Mid-Atlantic Panda homepage – https://midatlanticpanda.org/
Thank you to Paradise Dental Technologies aka PDT for providing sponsorship for this episodes CE credits!
THIS EPISODE COUNTS FOR CE! – but read the disclaimer below as it might not count for your state.
Go here to take the test and get your CE Credit!
Approved Pace Program Provider FAGD/MAGD Credit Approval Does Not Imply Acceptance By A State Or Provincial Board of Dentistry Or AGD Endorsement. 1/1/18- 12/31/19 Provider #373236
Be sure to thank the sponsor for CE for this episode by heading over to www.PDTDental.com and picking up a new instrument or telling them thank you in person at one of the conferences!
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