Impact of Oral Health Training on Primary Health Care Workers in Gandaki province of Nepal: A pilot study

Oral diseases encompass a range of diseases and conditions that include dental caries, periodontal (gum) disease, tooth loss, oral cancer, oro-dental trauma, noma, and birth defects such as cleft lip and palate. There is no dental manpower in the primary health care services (Health posts) in Nepal.  People residing in rural areas also have the right to have good oral health. For this reason, those manpower who are available in the health post should be trained regarding oral health so that the basic prevention strategies can be employed at the primary level. Before complete implementation of any program, it should be evaluated. Therefore this study will assess the impact of oral health training on primary health care workers in Gandaki Province, Nepal. The training will be provided by the Health Training Center Pokhara Nepal. Various dental experts (recommended by the training center) will provide training to the participants in the above-mentioned topics for six (6) days in April 2024.  The method of training will be using a PowerPoint presentation, different tooth models and brushing models, and video. There are a total of 30 questions for assessing oral health knowledge and 8 questions for oral health practices which will be filled by the participants. Data obtained will be entered in Microsoft Excel Sheet version 2013 and analyzed using R 4.3.2 software. The level of significance will be set at pË‚0.05. Shapiro–Wilk test will be used to check the normality of the data.