NBDHE NBDHE Community Oral Health Principles 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A dental hygienist conducting a community needs assessment should FIRST:
- Implement a prevention program
- Collect and analyze existing data (Correct answer)
- Apply for grant funding
- Train community volunteers
Correct answer: Collect and analyze existing data
Needs assessment begins with gathering and analyzing existing data to identify gaps before planning interventions.
Question 2: The term 'specificity' in diagnostic testing means the test's ability to:
- Detect all true cases of disease
- Correctly identify true negatives (Correct answer)
- Predict prognosis
- Measure disease progression
Correct answer: Correctly identify true negatives
Specificity is the proportion of healthy individuals correctly identified as disease-free (true negative rate).
Question 3: Which type of study design can establish a temporal relationship between exposure and disease?
- Cross-sectional study
- Case-control study
- Prospective cohort study (Correct answer)
- Ecological study
Correct answer: Prospective cohort study
Prospective cohort studies follow exposed and unexposed groups over time, allowing determination of whether exposure precedes disease onset.
Question 4: Dental sealants are an example of which type of preventive measure?
- Health promotion
- Specific protection (Correct answer)
- Early diagnosis
- Disability limitation
Correct answer: Specific protection
Sealants are a specific protection measure—they physically block the occlusal pits and fissures to prevent caries initiation.
Question 5: The primary goal of a school-based dental sealant program is to:
- Replace restorative dental care
- Reduce caries disparities in underserved children (Correct answer)
- Eliminate fluoride supplementation needs
- Train teachers in oral hygiene instruction
Correct answer: Reduce caries disparities in underserved children
School-based sealant programs target high-risk, underserved children to reduce caries disparities and improve oral health equity.
Question 6: Which measure of disease frequency represents the proportion of a population affected at a single point in time?
- Incidence rate
- Cumulative incidence
- Period prevalence
- Point prevalence (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Point prevalence
Point prevalence is the proportion of a defined population that has a disease at one specific point in time.
Question 7: The Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion (1986) emphasizes that health is:
- Solely the absence of disease and infirmity
- A resource for everyday life, not the objective of living (Correct answer)
- Primarily a medical responsibility
- Best achieved through clinical interventions alone
Correct answer: A resource for everyday life, not the objective of living
The Ottawa Charter defines health as a positive concept and a resource for everyday life, emphasizing social and personal resources.
NBDHE NBDHE Community Oral Health Principles 3
A dental hygienist conducting a community needs assessment should FIRST: