EFFECTS OF THE “KHAEW MAN KHWAN YUEN” PROGRAM TO PROMOTE DENTAL HEALTH LITERACY AND PROVIDE SOCIAL SUPPORT TO CHANGE BEHAVIORS TO PREVENT PERIODONTAL DISEASE AMONG VILLAGE HEALTH VOLUNTEERS
Keywords:
Health promotion, Oral health, Health literacy, Oral hygiene, Periodontal diseasesAbstract
Periodontal disease is a major cause of tooth loss. Enhancing dental health literacy and social support is a key strategy for prevention, particularly through Village Health Volunteers. This quasi-experimental research evaluated the effectiveness of the “KHAEW MAN KHWAN YUEN” program on (n=64), divided into experimental (n=32) and comparison groups (n=32). The experimental group participated in the 10-week program. Data were analyzed using Paired t-test, ANCOVA, and McNemar’s Chi-Square test. Results indicated that the experimental group achieved significantly higher scores than the comparison group in all dental health literacy domains, including access to information (X̅diff = 5.76, 95% CI: 3.49 to 8.04), understanding (X̅diff = 3.21, 95% CI: 2.36 to 4.06), communication (X̅diff = 18.71, 95% CI: 16.63 to 20.79), decision making (X̅diff = 4.74, 95% CI: 2.54 to 6.94), self-management (X̅diff = 3.57, 95% CI: 1.96 to 5.18), and media literacy (X̅diff = 6.22, 95% CI: 3.93 to 8.52). Additionally, the experimental group demonstrated better prevention behaviors (X̅diff = 4.41, 95% CI: 2.02 to 6.80) and a greater reduction in periodontal issues (COR = 2.82, 95% CI: 1.38 to 6.20). Thus, the program effectively improves dental health literacy and periodontal status, serving as a guideline for empowering VHVs in community oral health promotion.
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