ASTDD | State Oral Health Improvement Planning and Needs Assessment

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State Oral Health Improvement Planning and Needs Assessment

State oral health programs make an essential contribution to public health and must be continued and enhanced.

A successful SOHP must have diversified funding that includes funding for state and local evidence-based programs.
A successful SOHP needs a continuous, strong, credible, forward-thinking leader.
A successful SOHP needs a complement of staff, consultants and partners with proficiency in the ASTDD Competencies for SOHPs.
A successful SOHP needs one or more broad-based coalitions that include partners with fiscal and political clout.
A successful SOHP must have valid data (oral health status and other) to use for evaluation, high quality oral health surveillance, a state oral health plan with implementation strategies, and evidence-based programs and policies.

Strong and vibrant governmental oral health programs at all levels are critical to achieving oral health for all people. Good infrastructure increases capacity to enable basic programs to become strong, robust and resilient programs. Good infrastructure requires high levels of investment, expertise and political will.ASTDD provides several resources and technical assistance to states to help build and enhance state oral health program infrastructure and capacity.

ASTDD Resources

Guidelines for State & Territorial Oral Health Programs: Since the 1980s ASTDD has used the Guidelines for State and Territorial Oral Health Programs to assist health agency officials and public health administrators to develop and operate strong oral health programs. The Guidelines includes a matrix of oral health program roles for each of the Ten Essential Public Health Services to Promote Oral Health, categorized under the three public health core functions of Assessment, Policy Development and Assurance. It includes examples of specific activities for each role. (2021)

Competencies for State Oral Health Programs: These competencies represent those skill sets needed for a successful state oral health program, whether they are present in oral health program staff or are obtained from other programs or outside sources. To reflect varying levels of skills, four levels of attainment are included for each competency. Competencies can help states determine where the program stands and what are realistic expectations and aspirations. The competencies were developed as companion tool to the Guidelines for State and Territorial Oral Health Programs. (2020)

State Oral Health Improvement Plans Toolkit: This Toolkit with text, tips, examples, and links will provide information useful for planning, developing, disseminating, implementing and evaluating State Oral Health Improvement Plans (SOHIP). (2024)

ASTDD State webpages with State Oral Health Plans
Conceptual Model of Comprehensive Oral Health State Plan Process
Evaluation Item Checklist for State Oral Health Improvement Plans: This is a checklist from the Toolkit.

State Oral Health Plan Comparison Tool: The Comparison Tool allows for cross-state comparisons and features descriptive information detailing the extent of each state's oral health activities and relationship to one another. New and updated state plans will be added as they are completed and received. (2024)

ASTDD State Oral Health Plan Comparison Tool Description: Lists how to use the tool and states with up-to-date plans that are on the tool, states with out-of-date plans that are on the tool, and states that do not have a state oral health improvement plan. (2024)

Seven-Step Needs Assessment Model: The ASTDD Seven-Step Model provides in-depth guidance for completing an oral health needs assessment. The Model covers all key steps starting with convening an advisory committee and identifying shared goals for conducting the needs assessment, to navigating identification of available data, necessary primary data collection, analyzing data, to synthesizing information and systematically prioritizing oral health needs. Use the Model as a guidance document, and make final determinations based on the state's needs, budget, timelines, and other factors. (Revised 2024)

Oral Health Needs Assessment Planning Workbook: Lists 35 data items drawn from a variety of sources including Healthy People 2030, the National Oral Health Surveillance System included in the National Oral Health Data Portal, and various standards put forth for oral health programs. Use these worksheets in your planning.

Guidebook for Policy Consensus Tool: The purpose of this user's guide is to assist oral health partners with aggregating input and building policy consensus priorities for new oral health initiatives. (Revised 2024)

Policy Consensus Tool Technical Assistance Request Form: Complete this form if you need ASTDD to provide a facilitator for this tool.

Public Health Policies: A Key Element of State Oral Health Infrastructure: This handout lists 10 key recommendations important for implementing state and local public health policies and what policymakers can do to support oral health policy development. (Revised August 2024)

Oral Health Coalitions & Community Advocates: A Key Element of State Oral Health Infrastructure: This handout lists 10 key recommendations that oral health coalitions and community advocates can use to advocate for strong, effective state oral health programs and policies. (Revised August 2024)

Roles for State Health Officials: This handout describes key roles of state oral health programs and the roles state health officials can play to support oral health and state oral health programs. (Revised August 2024)

State and Territorial Oral Health Programs and Collaborative Partnerships: This report provides an overview of how collaboration can promote and assure oral disease prevention activities, increase access to oral health services, and improve oral health for diverse population groups. The nature of collaborative partnerships and how they may be defined, structured, funded and function are discussed, along with providing resources such as toolkits, guides and evaluation tools. (March 2020)

Toolkit for Planning, Evaluating, and Improving Interagency Collaboration for Oral Health Programs: The purpose of the Toolkit is to provide a framework and specific strategies for planning, improving, and evaluating inter-agency collaboration to more effectively and efficiently address our most complicated and complex national oral health issues through strategic alliances and organizational partnerships. The toolkit contains a Handbook, a Workbook, and worksheets. Although many examples are targeted to state oral health programs, the materials and concepts apply to any oral health program or coalition. (Updated 2021)

Technical Assistance to States: ASTDD provides a variety of technical assistance to states. The request may be for help on a specific topic, help in conducting a self-study to determine progress or areas for improvement, a comprehensive onsite program review by a consulting team, or follow up to an onsite review. Depending on the type of request, technical assistance may occur via email, phone, travel to a state/territory by a consultant(s) or travel to another state or federal agency by someone from the state/territory. Charges may apply for some TA.

Non ASTDD Resources

Essential Public Health Services to Promote Health and Oral Health in the United States (2021)

Summary of the Revised 10 Essential Public Health Services (2020)

Defining Public Health Practice: 25 Years of the 10 Essential Public Health Services Environmental Scan (2019)