Behavioral and Oral Health Integration Training

Oral and behavioral health are interconnected, with each significantly impacting the other and contributing to overall health and well-being. Individuals with mental health conditions or substance use disorders tend to have greater oral health disparities when compared to the general population. For example, people with severe mental illness have 2.7 times the likelihood of losing all teeth. Furthermore, medications for managing behavioral health conditions affect oral health, including causing dry mouth, which can lead to increased tooth decay. The significant connection between oral health and behavioral health resulted in the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Oral Health Unit (CDPHE OHU) developing a Behavioral and Oral Health Integration (BOHI) project, comprising free resources and training opportunities for behavioral health and oral health professionals.

The goal of the BOHI project is to create a focus on comprehensive care by:  

• Viewing the needs of the whole patient.
• Establishing a bidirectional referral process that creates a “no wrong door” approach to needed services.
• Decreasing health disparities by increasing access to care. 

The OHU offers a free training opportunity designed to help behavioral and oral health staff better understand the connections between behavioral and oral health and strategies for implementing BOHI in clinical settings. Free continuing education credit is available for dental professionals who complete the training.

The BOHI training is a virtual one-hour course that includes:

• Identifying and understanding the connections between behavioral and oral health, including discussing Social Determinants of Health. 
• Understanding the levels of integration for behavioral health and dental bidirectional partnerships. 
• Recognizing the role dental and behavioral health teams play in screening and referral. 
• Reviewing available screening and referral forms and tools.
• Practicing motivational interviewing techniques (for dental teams only).
• Reviewing FAQs for dental screening (for behavioral health teams only).