National Oral Health Programme (NOHP) Programme
Introduction:
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Oral health is a state of being free from chronic mouth and facial pain, oral and throat cancer, oral sores, birth defects such as cleft lip and palate, periodontal (gum) disease, tooth decay and tooth loss, and other diseases and disorders that affect the oral cavity. Oral health is indispensable for the wellbeing and good quality of life. Poor oral health affects growth negatively in all aspects of human development. Dental caries and periodontal disease remain the two most prevalent dental diseases of the Indian population. Oral health has been neglected over the years, especially in the underprivileged areas. Amongst many reasons, low level of awareness among the population and the care providers even, has led to continued neglect of dental care. Oral diseases have also been linked to bacterial endocarditis, atherosclerosis, chronic obstructive lung diseases and preterm low birth weight. Periodontal health has direct links with diabetes. As per recent data from Dental Council of India, there are about 1.5 lakh registered dentists for a population of about 1.3 billion, out of which 72% live in villages which remain deprived from dental care. Some states have made progress in providing comprehensive oral health care through its primary care system [through the NHM umbrella]. Dental units are established even in the Primary Health Centre in some states. However, a lot still remains to be achieved in many of the other states. Govt. of India has envisaged the National Oral Health Program [NOHP] for an affordable, accessible and equitable oral health care delivery in a well coordinated manner.
About Us
Oral Health is vital for overall well-being and quality of life. Indian Dental Association (IDA) drafted the National Oral Health Programme to address the burden of dental disease in an effective manner for bringing about ‘optimal oral health’ for all by 2020.
National Oral Health Programme
Taking into account the oral health situation in the country, Government of India has initiated a National Oral Health Programme to provide integrated, comprehensive oral health care in the existing health care facilities with the following objectives:
- To improve the determinants of oral health
- To reduce morbidity from oral diseases
- To integrate oral health promotion and preventive services with general health care system
- To encourage Promotion of Public Private Partnerships (PPP) model for achieving better oral health.
In order to achieve above listed objectives, Government of India has decided to assist the State Governments in initiating provision of dental care along with other ongoing health programmes implemented at various levels of the primary health care system. Funding has been made available through the State PIPs for establishment of a dental unit [at district level or below]
This dental unit equipped with necessary trained manpower, equipments including dental chair and support for consumables would be provided to the states through the NOHP. These units, according to the level of saturation of state’s own dental units, may be established at district hospitals or in the health facilities below the level of district hospitals.