Oral Care in Aged Care for Allied Health

Oral Care in Aged Care is designed to train carers in providing, and assisting with, oral care that maintains the consumer’s oral hygiene and overall health.

Target Audience

This training is designed for carers in both residential and home service aged care providers. 

Oral Care in Aged Care is recommended for all carers due to the importance of oral care in the elderly and the links between good oral health and other health conditions, such as heart disease.

This training can be deemed as supporting Standard 3 of the Aged Care Quality Standards, Personal care and clinical care.

Learning Outcomes

Oral Care in Aged Care provides practical guidance on brushing and flossing, mouth care and how to identify possible oral health problems. It also provides practical advice on diet and behaviour. This course has a dedicated topic for denture care, with a focus on full dentures, due to the number of older adults requiring them. 

The goal of the course is to improve oral care interactions with aged care consumers and better oral hygiene outcomes. The course is designed to provide the learner with practical training on providing – and assisting with – oral care. It also provides an understanding of the issues and importance of oral care in ageing. 

The course is split into three topics with the following sections.:

Oral Hygiene for natural Teeth

• Brushing teeth
• Good oral care

Care, Removal and Cleaning of Dentures

• Removing dentures
• Cleaning and maintenance
• Inserting dentures

Oral health Assessments and Planning in Aged care

• Oral health assessments
• Oral health planning

This course is excellent short and practical training that can be used to reinforce the importance of oral care as a part of the carers' and patients' routines. Good oral care helps maintain quality of life and reduces the risk of further health interventions. 

This course has been created in collaboration with the University of South Australia.