Magic Mouthguards and Primary Oral Health Care–Evidence for Policy Makers
Date
Authors
Ihimaera, CN
Silcock, EM
Tuohy, J
Supervisor
Item type
Journal Article
Degree name
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
The New Zealand Dental Association
Abstract
The World Health Organization (WHO) advocates for diverse evidence in effective health policy development and practice. This paper describes the ‘Magic Mouthguard’ initiative, an innovative oral health collaboration between a university, a corporate sponsor, and a public high school rugby team. Primarily aimed at injury prevention, the team’s international triumph created unforeseen association between the mouthguards and their athletic achievement. The ‘magic’ of these mouthguards lead to communal uplift derived from feeling cared for and invested in, potentially contributing to the rugby team’s victory. The initiative also advanced equitable access to custom-fitted mouthguards while confronting a systemic inequity by providing oral health treatment to young athletes who often face barriers to accessing oral healthcare, especially within a Māori and Pasifika communities in Aotearoa New Zealand. The story illustrates healthcare innovation by demonstrating that settings are integral to healthcare delivery and trust is foundational for engagement. This highlights how leveraging embedded knowledge and diverse evidence can integrate into oral health practice and promote population-level health.Description
Keywords
1105 Dentistry, Dentistry, 3203 Dentistry
Source
New Zealand Dental Journal, ISSN: 0028-8047 (Print), 122(1), 48-54.
DOI
Publisher's version
Rights statement
The New Zealand Dental Journal publishes open access peer-reviewed original research and review articles.