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Office of Oral Health

About the Office

The Office of Oral Health mission is to promote oral health for the well-being of all Arizona residents. In doing so, we coordinate a number of initiatives and administer five main programs:

  • Arizona Dental Sealant Program
  • Fluoride Mouthrinse Program
  • Dental Trailer Loan Program
  • Community Oral Health Systems Development Program
  • Healthy Teeth, Healthy Families (Early Childhood Caries prevention program)

The three primary areas of focus within the Office of Oral Health include:

Prevention Programs

Include training of health professionals and oral health programs for children. Specifically, we:

  • Provides training of health professionals in the prevention, control and treatment of oral diseases affecting infants, toddlers and pregnant women.
  • Promotes the use of dental sealants by public and private dental care systems to prevent tooth decay. The Office administers the Arizona Dental Sealant Program, a school based program providing sealants to underserved 2nd and 6th grade children.
  • Promotes the use of weekly fluoride mouthrinses for at-risk children to prevent tooth decay.

Community Development

Initiatives focus on promoting oral health at the state and community levels. Specifically, we:

  • Promotes optimal fluoridation of community water supplies for the prevention of tooth decay.
  • Assists communities in assessing their oral health needs and resources.
  • Provides assistance to communities to increase access to oral health services through development of dental clinics and other dental care systems.
  • Provides consultation and technical assistance to administrators, government agencies, non-profit organizations and other professional groups to facilitate the delivery of quality oral health services.

Research and Analysis

The team collects, analyzes and distributes Arizona oral health data. Specifically, we:

  • Conducts assessments of selected communities to evaluate oral health status and treatment needs for use in program planning and policy making.
  • Monitors dental workforce issues across the state.
  • Assists in Dental Health Professional Shortage Area designations.
  • Tracks information of Office of Oral Health Programs to improve effectiveness.