We are delighted to roll out our Oral Care structured training services for staff in care homes. In 2019, the CQC commissioned a review of oral health in care homes and found that over 47% of care homes were not providing adequate training to support daily oral care. In addition, 17% did not assess their residents’ oral health on admission and 73% of residents’ care plans only covered oral health partly or not at all. These findings were detailed in the CQC report “Smiling Matters” in which it is recommended that care staff receive training that includes oral health care. Together with NICE Guideline 48, the CQC report sets out a framework that promotes proper oral care and aims to improve the quality of life of the residents. This includes an assessment upon admission, the drawing up of a care plan and the creation of a daily care log. This empowers care staff to flag up any issues arising and give them the tools to recognise oral care conditions that may require urgent or routine professional attention, whilst ensuring that residents get the care and support they need in maintaining their oral health.

We are delighted that oral care has been given the importance it deserves and would relish the opportunity to help improve oral health awareness within the residential and nursing home setting. As you will be aware,Castle and Costa has been the leading provider of domiciliary care in the region for over 20 years, and we have passionately sought to improve oral health outcomes for our patients and residents of care settings in general. Over the last year, we have been working closely with a number of care homes in the region to bring their processes up to the required CQC and NICE standards and deliver the necessary training to care staff. We welcome the concept of trained staff disseminating their knowledge to other co-workers, but feel that face-to-face training sessions are the most effective way to deliver oral health training.

Oral Care training sessions are interactive, giving care staff the opportunity to ask questions, practise their skills and draw from previous experience. The training sessions are led by our dental care professionals (DCPSs), who hold a certificate in Oral Health Education. Our training enables care staff to set up systems and procedures which would satisfy all of the CQC and NICE requirements. Furthermore, our training is flexible and responsive, allowing us to deliver a program that reflects the trainees’ needs. We would be happy to arrange follow-up or refresher sessions as necessary.

Each session would last approximately 1 hour, and will include (but not necessarily be limited to):

• Training slides on Oral Care as issued by Public Health England (2 Sessions)
• Introduction to Oral Health Risk Assessments, Care Plans & Daily Care,
• Toothbrushing & Dietary Instruction (including practical session if required)
• Denture Care (including practical session & labelling dentures)

The cost per 1 hr session is £95, with a deductible deposit of £30 required to secure a booking. Should you be interested in undertaking any of the training sessions, or have any queries, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us