East Surrey Hospital is leading the way in a new initiative aimed at improving the mouth care of adult patients on the wards.
The hospital, which is run by Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, is the first trust in the country to introduce a dedicated Mouthcare Matters Team on its wards.
The four strong mouth care team are training nursing and support staff and raising awareness of the importance of oral health and the impact it can have on a patient’s overall health.
Mili Doshi, consultant in special care dentistry, at the Trust, said: “Hospitalised adult patients are at higher risk of developing problems with their mouth. By improving mouth care on the wards we can improve patient dignity, the ability to eat and drink and help to reduce the risk of infections such as oral thrush and pneumonia. This initiative is having a positive impact on the quality of patient care and helping to improve the general health and recovery of our patients.”
The programme, which has been developed by staff at East Surrey Hospital, is being funded by Health Education England, Kent, Surrey and Sussex, and will be introduced across the south east of England in the next year.
Find out more about the importance of mouth care at our dental hot topic event on 15 October. Meet our consultants and learn about the services we provide, our specialist paediatric and special care teams and the impact of dental health on your general health. You will also have the opportunity to visit our dental simulation suite – a state of the art hub for dental training across the region.
The event is open to everyone and will run from 6 to 8pm in the hospital’s Postgraduate Education Centre. If you would like to attend please visit www.surreyandsussex.nhs.uk/hot-topic.
