2005

Background

Despite the significant role of oral health in overall health, information about oral health and its impact on overall health was lacking in undergraduate and graduate medical education.

To address this deficit, four groups of family medicine educators independently presented materials focusing on oral health education at the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine’s (STFM) conference held in 2004. The STFM Group on Oral Health was formed at the conference to merge materials into a curriculum and coordinate efforts for oral health education.

The resulting free, open-access Smiles for Life: A National Oral Health Curriculum (Smiles for Life) for residency and medical school curriculum was released in 2005 and consisted of four modules: (1) Adult Oral Health, (2) Child Oral Health, (3) Oral Emergencies, and (4) The Relationship of Oral to Systemic Health.

A second edition of the curriculum was released in 2008 and included two additional modules: (1) Caries, Risk Assessment, Fluoride Varnish, and Counseling and (2) Oral Health and the Pregnant Patient. The curriculum’s target audience was expanded to include all primary care clinicians, including physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners.

In 2010, a third edition of the curriculum was released. The target audience continued to be primary care clinicians and included two modules: (1) Geriatric Oral Health and (2) The Oral Examination, and interactive online learning opportunities for individuals and small groups.

The fourth edition of the curriculum, which was released in 2020, features evidence-based practices and guidelines, as well as content reflecting advancements in oral health care and primary care integration.

Also in 2020, STFM produced Front Line Health Worker Curriculum to share information with community health workers, health educators, case managers, care coordinators, public health workers, and peer health promoters who provide oral health outreach, advocacy, patient education, care coordination, health care navigation, and social support for communities they serve. The curriculum consists of four modules; the first is an introduction, and the remaining three focus on the oral health of children, women (including pregnant women), and adults.

Impact

Smiles for Life covers oral health across the lifespan and provides continuing education credit for medical professionals and oral health professionals. The curriculum is used in professional schools, postgraduate training programs, and public health efforts to integrate oral health content into primary care education and oral health care into primary care practice. The curriculum is endorsed by numerous national organizations, including the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Dental Association, the American Academy of Physician Assistants, and the National Association for Pediatric Nurse Practitioners.

By 2020, Smiles for Life had registered more the 150,000 uses and 450,000 documented completions of modules. More than 85 percent of primary care health professionals who registered to use the curriculum reported improvements in conducting caries risk assessments and oral cancer screenings and providing fluoride varnish applications and oral health education. Most health educators reported that the curriculum led them to integrate oral health education or enhance it in their courses.

Sources

Douglass AB, Gonsalves W, Maier R, Silk H, Stevens N, Tysinger J, Wrightson AS. 2007. Smiles for Life: A National Oral Health Curriculum For Family Medicine. A model for curriculum development by STFM groups. Family Medicine 39(2):88–90.

National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. 2021. Oral Health in America: Advances and Challenges. Bethesda, MD: National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.

 

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