The role of dentists in HPV vaccination: Building the infrastructure between co-located dental practices and federally qualified health centers to facilitate HPV vaccination uptake

About 27 million people each year have a dental visit but no medical visit. Dentists rarely ask patients about preventive health behaviors, such as flu shots, human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines, mammograms, or screening for chronic diseases. In 2015, oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) surpassed cervical cancer as the most common and deadly HPV-associated cancer in the US. Given the incidence of HPV-attributable OPCs, HPV vaccine as a mode of primary prevention, dental providers can play a pivotal role in HPV cancer prevention. This project involves understanding the functioning of co-located dental practices and federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) in eastern North Carolina and how dental health providers may play a role in facilitating HPV vaccination uptake for under-vaccinated populations in these co-located sites. Specific aims include: 1) To assess HPV-related OPC knowledge, perceptions, practices and barriers of current general dentists and dental hygienists in North Carolina, 2) To understand current key infrastructure elements and policies, as well as HPV prevention strategies in place at current East Carolina University School of Dental Medicine Community Service Learning Centers and their partnering Community Clinics/ FQHCs, and 3) To develop a model where the dental practice refers unvaccinated patients to the co-located FQHCs for vaccination.

Scholars @ ECU