title: The evaluation of an oral health education program for midwives in Australia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Antenatal care providers are now recommended to promote oral health during pregnancy and provide dental referrals. However, midwives in Australia are not trained to undertake this role. To address this shortcoming, an online evidence based midwifery initiated oral health (MIOH) education program was systematically developed as a professional development activity.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the program in improving the oral health knowledge of midwives and assess their confidence to promote maternal oral health post training.
  
  
  METHODS
  The program was evaluated using a pre-post test design involving 50 midwives purposively recruited from two states in Australia. The pre-post questionnaire contained 24 knowledge items previously pilot tested as well as items exploring confidence in promoting oral health and perceptions of the program.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results showed a significant improvement in the oral health knowledge (↑21.5%, p<0.001) of midwives after completion of the program. The greatest improvement in knowledge occurred in key areas vital in promoting maternal oral health namely the high prevalence of dental problems and its impact on birth and infant outcomes. The majority also reported being confident in introducing oral health into antenatal care (82%) and referring women to dental services (77.6%) after undertaking the education program.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The MIOH education program is a useful resource to equip midwives with the necessary knowledge and skills to promote oral health during pregnancy. The program is accessible and acceptable to midwives and can potentially be transferable to other antenatal care providers.
authors.affiliation: Collaboration for Oral Health Outcomes, Research, Translation and Evaluation (COHORTE) Research Group, Western Sydney University/South Western Sydney Local Health District/University of Sydney/Centre for Applied Nursing Research/Ingham Institute Applied Medical Research, Liverpool 1871, Australia. Electronic address: ajesh.george@sswahs.nsw.gov.au.
authors.forename: Ajesh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: George
authors.affiliation: Healthy Families, Healthy Smiles, Dental Health Services Victoria, Melbourne 3053, Australia.
authors.forename: Gillian
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lang
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences, Australian Catholic University, Sydney 2060, Australia.
authors.forename: Maree
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Healthy Families, Healthy Smiles, Dental Health Services Victoria, Melbourne 3053, Australia.
authors.forename: Allison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ridge
authors.affiliation: Dental Health Services Victoria, and Melbourne Dental School, University of Melbourne, 3053, Australia.
authors.forename: Andrea M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: de Silva
authors.affiliation: Sydney Local Health District Oral Health Services/Sydney Dental Hospital/University of Sydney, 2010, Australia.
authors.forename: Shilpi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ajwani
authors.affiliation: Sydney Local Health District Oral Health Services/Sydney Dental Hospital/University of Sydney, 2010, Australia.
authors.forename: Sameer
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bhole
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Dentistry, University of Sydney, Sydney 2006, Australia.
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Blinkhorn
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing & Midwifery, Western Sydney University/Ingham Institute Applied Medical Research, Parramatta 2150, Australia.
authors.forename: Hannah G
authors.initials: HG
authors.lastname: Dahlen
authors.affiliation: Camden and Campbelltown Hospitals, South Western Sydney Local Health District, 2170, Australia.
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ellis
authors.affiliation: Centre for Applied Nursing Research, Western Sydney University, Liverpool 1871, Australia.
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yeo
authors.affiliation: Centre for Applied Nursing Research, Western Sydney University/South Western Sydney Local Health District/Ingham Institute Applied Medical Research, Liverpool 1871, Australia.
authors.forename: Rachel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Langdon
authors.affiliation: Dental Health Services Victoria and The Jack Brockhoff Child Health and Wellbeing Program, Melbourne 3053, Australia.
authors.forename: Lauren
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Carpenter
authors.affiliation: Centre for Applied Oral Health Research, Dental Health Services Victoria, Melbourne 3053, Australia.
authors.forename: Adina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heilbrunn-Lang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001315:Australia; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008875:Middle Aged; D008880:Midwifery / Q000193:education*; D009909:Oral Health; D010465:Perception; D011247:Pregnancy; D011295:Prenatal Care / Q000379:methods*; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Antenatal care providers; Education program; Midwives; Oral health; Pregnancy