Aggressive strategic planning for oral health in Kuwait: a decade of post-war successes.
Strategic planning and implementation of oral health care and disease prevention programmes after the 1990/91 Gulf war are discussed. The key concept was to develop access to care and disease prevention for all Kuwaiti children in government kindergarten/primary schools and to eliminate emphasis on extractions and restorations. Resources were restored to pre-war levels and then increased. Prevention programmes for 150 000 children were established. Prevention funds increased from 7% to 20% of the oral health budget. Prevention-based dentists increased from 9.7% to 28.0% of staff. Rising caries trends were stabilized or reduced by up to 36.8%. Percentage of caries-free primary dentition in children increased up to 37.6%, permanent dentition up to 27.0%. A dentistry school was established.
Morris
R E
RE
Ministry of Health, Kuwait. morriskwt@yahoo.com
Gillespie
G M
GM
Al Za'abi
F
F
Al Rashed
B
B
Al Mahmeed
B E
BE
D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004245:DMF Index; D019140:Dental Care for Children / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D003815:Dentists / Q000600:supply & distribution / Q000639:trends; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000639:trends; D006285:Health Planning / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000458:organization & administration; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000458:organization & administration; D006302:Health Services Research; D006801:Humans; D007730:Kuwait / Q000453:epidemiology; D009313:National Health Programs / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009909:Oral Health; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D011313:Preventive Dentistry / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011322:Primary Prevention / Q000458:organization & administration; D016730:Program Development; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012572:School Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014857:Warfare