A DENTAL EDUCATION PROGRAM IN TOBACCO

The use of tobacco represents a significant public health problem, with specific effects on oral tissue. These effects provide dental health care workers (DHCWs) to help patients quit, yet, the majority of dental professionals cite lack of training as a barrier to providing these services. There is a need for disseminable, empirically-validated tobacco education. Interactive computer-based programs can meet this need. The primary goal of the "A Dental Education Program in Tobacco" (ADEPT) project is to develop an interactive computer-based program to train DHCWs to provide brief, office-based tobacco cessation interventions to patients. During Phase I, we developed and evaluated a prototype program. During Phase II, we will completely revise the interactive training CD-ROM based on the evaluation data, develop and evaluate a hybrid program that combines the best features of CD-ROM and Internet technologies, and create a Digital Versatile Disk (DVD) version of the program. Our team has extensive experience in developing interactive training programs, tobacco education for dental health care workers, and creating and evaluating Internet-based health programs, uniquely qualifying us to conduct the research proposed herein. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS: We will produce an interactive training program for 520 professional schools for DHCWs and for continuing education of the estimated 150,000 dentists, 100,000 dental hygienists, and 200,000 dental assistants in the United States. The program will teach DHCWs to provide a brief, office-based tobacco cessation intervention to their patients in the context of oral health care. Though stand-alone CD- ROM and Internet delivery, this program meets the goals of professional organizations and training programs, and offers a unique opportunity to learn behavioral skills that are not currently offered.