Happy Holidays
Warm wishes to all of you from all of us at OHRC!
Jenna, Katrina, Katy, Ruth, Sarah, and Susan
News from OHRC
The following news and resources are featured by the National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC).
Resource on Use, Handling, Cleaning and Storage of Toothbrushes
OHRC’s Guidance for Safe Use, Handling, Cleaning, and Storage of Toothbrushes in Child Care Settings and Elementary Schools provides information related to toothbrushing in educational settings.
It discusses safe use and handling of toothbrushes, for example, disinfecting the classroom table, washing hands, and wearing gloves. It also discusses safe cleaning and storage of toothbrushes, for example, not covering toothbrushes and how to store toothbrushes in a toothbrush holder.
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To learn more about classroom toothbrushing and how you can help children have healthy mouths watch the video, Steps for Toothbrushing at the Table: Growing Healthy Smiles in Early Care and Education Programs. It describes how to prepare, model, clean up, and store supplies.
The National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center is the oral health partner in the Office of Head Start’s National Center on Health, Behavioral Health, and Safety
Head Start Oral Health Webinar Oral Health Key Messages for Head Start Staff to Share with Families On Tuesday, January 13 at 2 pm ET, join this webinar to learn how to talk with families about limiting foods and drinks with added sugar and drinking water throughout the day. Get tips for sharing information about having a dental visit by age 1 and maintaining good oral health during pregnancy and early childhood. Presented with English and Spanish captioning and simultaneous interpretation in Spanish. Register. 
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Resource Spotlight
This report focuses on the importance of tracking emergency department use trends for non-traumatic dental conditions. It includes selected findings during the period 2019–2022: use trends, cost trends, visit rates by age, visit rates for people enrolled in Medicaid compared with those with private insurance, and visit rates for people living in small or medium metropolitan areas compared with those living in a central cosmopolitan county or a rural area. [Produced by CareQuest Institute for Oral Health]
In the News
Update: Due Date Extended: 100 Million Mouths Campaign Recruiting Champions in Six States
The Center for Integration of Primary Care and Oral Health (CIPCOH) and 100 Million Mouths Campaign are looking for interested individuals to apply to join a national network of oral health education champions. Eligible applicants are from Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Utah. One oral health education champion from each state listed will be recruited. State champions will join current champions in 30 states. Individuals that are chosen to be the state champion will be offered a financial stipend to attend training and planning sessions for tools and resources to engage schools and programs in their state to teach more oral health to their students and residents. To learn more about becoming an oral health education champion in this program, or if someone you know wishes to submit an application, please visit the website. Applications are now due Monday, January 5.
Call for Applications: NIDCR Research Fellowship
Applications are now open for the NIDCR Dental Public Health Research Fellowship, a unique opportunity for dentists with public health training who are passionate about shaping the future of oral health through research and practice. This three-year fellowship offers an exceptional blend of learning, discovery, and professional growth. Throughout the program, fellows also enhance their leadership, communication, and professional skills to help launch and sustain impactful careers. The fellowship is a full-time, in-person experience that provides a competitive stipend. Selected fellows will begin their training in the summer of 2026. Applications will be accepted through December 31, 2025; contact [email protected] with questions.
DQA Resources: Dashboard Update and IDD Guide
The Dental Quality Alliance (DQA) of the American Dental Association has announced the completion of a comprehensive update to the DQA State Oral Healthcare Dashboard. The platform now includes 2022 data for all available measures, incorporating the most recent T-MSIS dataset available. This update enhances the dashboard's utility as a central hub for viewing the landscape of oral health care quality. View trends over time, compare across geography, and access comprehensive measures. The full suite of DQA measures is now refreshed to reflect the 2022 reporting year, allowing you to explore trends and state comparisons with the latest data.
DQA also announced User Guide for Evaluating Quality of Care for Special Populations Using DQA Program and Plan Level Measures, a new resource designed to help stakeholders better assess oral health care quality for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDD). This guide creates a feasible pathway for highlighting gaps in care and supporting quality improvement for this priority population. It provides a methodology for applying existing DQA measures specifically to the IDD population. Users can compute measure scores specifically for the IDD population, stratify data to reveal disparities in care access and utilization, and generate meaningful insights using a standardized, validated definition of IDD.
Training Opportunity on Obstetric Risk Management
The National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA) provides a live webinar that is later available as a recording of a training designed to satisfy the Federal Tort Claims Act annual obstetric risk management training requirement required of federally-funded health center clinical staff. Obstetric Risk Management for Oral Health Professionals will be offered on January 27, 2026 at 3:30 pm ET. Presenters, including Katy Battani from OHRC, will discuss the importance and safety of oral health care during pregnancy and provides practice guidance and pharmacological considerations. The session will be available on-demand through the end of 2026. Register.
The Oral Health Learning Café is open every month to host presentations and discussion about integrating oral health and primary care. On January 8, 2026, join us for Partnering with Community Health Workers to Improve Access to Oral Health Care for the Maternal and Child Health Population in Idaho with Taleah Bankos-Jacobsen, Terry Reilly Health Services, and Sowmya Natarajan, Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. Register.
Visit our website to find recordings of past Café gatherings and subscribe to the discussion list to receive announcements about upcoming webinars and the monthly Integration Alert.
Copyright (C) 2025 National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center. All rights reserved.
Contact OHRC at [email protected]
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This resource was supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an annual award totaling $1,700,000 with no funding from nongovernmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, or endorsement by, HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. government. For more information, please visit www.HRSA.gov.
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