Evaluation of the Use of a Novel Oral Health Screening Instrument by Caregivers in Nursing Homes
OHS-interRAI
Process and Outcome Evaluation of the Optimized Oral Health-related Section of the Belgian Resident Assessment Instrument and Its Training: a Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial
3 other identifiers
interventional
462
1 country
1
Brief Summary
BACKGROUND: Oral health of nursing home residents is often poor. Oral health is related to general health, quality of life and well-being. Health care providers in nursing homes can be seen as important intermediaries to improve oral health as they are responsible for the residents' daily care and as they could regularly check resident's oral health. The goal of this interventional study is to evaluate the use of a new oral health screening tool for older adults in nursing homes (OHS-interRAI) in an everyday context. This tool is included in the Belgian version of the International Resident Assessment Instrument for long-term care facilities and will be used by healthcare providers without a dental background. The evaluation will be done at different levels using mixed methods. The main questions this study aims to answer at level of the residents are:
- What is the effect of regular oral health assessment on oral health of the residents?
- How do residents perceive oral health and experience the regular oral health assessments? At level of the health care providers the main questions are:
- How do they experience the use of the OHS-interRAI for oral health assessments?
- To what extent are the assessments by health care providers comparable to assessments performed by oral health professionals? METHODS: This research will compare the outcomes of nursing homes using the OHS-interRAI with outcomes of nursing homes using the oral health screening tool which is currently used in Belgian nursing homes. Nursing homes will be assigned randomly to the different groups. Both healthcare providers and residents assign for participation. Healthcare providers will follow a training on how to perform the screening with the OHS-interRAI and to monitor residents' oral health. Residents agree to regular oral health assessments by their healthcare providers every six months over a 2-years period.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at P75+ for not_applicable
Started Jan 2022
Typical duration for not_applicable
1 active site
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
Click on a node to explore related trials.
Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
Study Start
First participant enrolled
January 3, 2022
CompletedFirst Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
July 23, 2024
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
August 2, 2024
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
February 28, 2025
CompletedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
February 28, 2025
CompletedAugust 2, 2024
July 1, 2024
3.2 years
July 23, 2024
July 30, 2024
Conditions
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (1)
Oral health data measured with interRAI LTCF
The oral health related data measured with interRAI LTCF consists of 6 items which are scored dichotomously. The optimized oral health-related section (OHS-interRAI) consists of 9 items and result in categorized data: 1= good condition, 2= bad condition, 3= not judgable, 4= not applicable. As only scores 1 and 2 distinguish between good and bad condition, the items can be seen as dichotomous variables. Oral health data is collected by healthcare providers and dentists.
every six months over a 2-years period
Secondary Outcomes (5)
Oral Hygiene Index
every six months over a 2-years period
Modified Gingival Index
every six months over a 2-years period
PUFA-index - Pulp, Ulceration, Fistel, Abscess
every six months over a 2-years period
Interview data
interviews will be conducted within 14 to 80 days following the baseline oral health assessment
Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14)
will be assessed within 14 to 80 days following the baseline oral health assessment
Other Outcomes (1)
Qualitative data on the use of the OHS-interRAI for oral health assessments
3 months after intervention and one year after intervention
Study Arms (3)
control group
NO INTERVENTIONHealthcare providers assess the oral health of the residents on a regular basis using the current oral health section of BelRAI LTCF and deliver (oral) care as usual.
intervention group T1
EXPERIMENTALHealthcare providers in intervention group T1 assess the oral health of the residents on a regular basis using the OHS-interRAI after completing an e-learning on how to perform the assessment.
Intervention group T2
EXPERIMENTALHealthcare providers in intervention group T2 have the same condition as intervention group T1. Additionally they received on-site practical training to perform the assessment and can ask for support throughout the project concerning all aspects of oral health assessment and oral care.
Interventions
An oral health screening tool is being tested. Former name was the optimized oral health-related section of the interRAI (ohr-interRAI). This was further optimized into the OHS-interRAI. The OHS-interRAI comprises of 3 oral health-related items that are assessed through questioning the resident, and 6 items that require visual inspection of the mouth.
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- Residents need to be 65 years or older
- Residents have permanent residence in a nursing home
You may not qualify if:
- Residents with a palliative health situation, assessed using the interRAI LTCF, are excluded.
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
- KU Leuvenlead
- Research Foundation Flanderscollaborator
Study Sites (1)
KU Leuven
Leuven, Belgium
Related Publications (4)
Vandenbulcke PAI, de Almeida Mello J, Cornette V, Brabants M, Schoebrechts E, De Lepeleire J, Declercq A, Declerck D, Duyck J. Nursing home residents' perspectives on oral health: An in-depth interview study. Int J Nurs Stud Adv. 2024 Apr 11;6:100198. doi: 10.1016/j.ijnsa.2024.100198. eCollection 2024 Jun.
PMID: 38746809RESULTVandenbulcke PAI, de Almeida Mello J, Schoebrechts E, De Lepeleire J, Declercq A, Declerck D, Duyck J. Screening oral health in older adults: accuracy of the Oral Health Screener for use within the interRAI. Sci Rep. 2026 Jan 26. doi: 10.1038/s41598-026-35517-2. Online ahead of print. No abstract available.
PMID: 41588085DERIVEDVandenbulcke PAI, de Almeida Mello J, Piccart FMP, De Lepeleire J, Schoebrechts E, Declercq A, Declerck D, Duyck J. Implementation of the OHS-interRAI for regular oral health assessments by non-dental caregivers: focus group study using a SWOT analysis. BMC Public Health. 2025 Jul 26;25(1):2552. doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-22938-3.
PMID: 40713511DERIVEDVandenbulcke PAI, de Almeida Mello J, Schoebrechts E, De Lepeleire J, Declercq A, Declerck D, Duyck J. Oral health of nursing home residents in Flanders, Belgium, and its associated factors. Sci Rep. 2025 Feb 14;15(1):5463. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-89910-4.
PMID: 39953136DERIVED
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Study Officials
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Joke Duyck
KU Leuven
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- RANDOMIZED
- Masking
- SINGLE
- Who Masked
- OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
- Masking Details
- Care providers and participants in the intervention group know they are testing a new tool. Care providers and participants in the control group continue care as usual and do not know about the new tool.
- Purpose
- OTHER
- Intervention Model
- PARALLEL
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
- PI Title
- Principal Investigator
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
July 23, 2024
First Posted
August 2, 2024
Study Start
January 3, 2022
Primary Completion
February 28, 2025
Study Completion
February 28, 2025
Last Updated
August 2, 2024
Record last verified: 2024-07
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will not share
The oral health data that support the findings of this study are available from Pyxicare, Belgium, but restrictions apply to the availability of these data, which were used under General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) license for the current study. Therefore, data are not publicly available, but can be assessed upon reasonable request and with permission from the Belgian Privacy Commission.