As a media outlet that covers employee benefits, I thought you would be interested in information about our dental health risk assessment tool for employees that identifies oral signs and symptoms relating to chronic health problems. This assessment tool can help lower health care costs by preserving low-risk populations and funneling those at risk into wellness initiatives.
Philadelphia, PA -- February 14, 2007 -- Can something as simple as asking questions about oral health be helpful in reducing weight, heart disease and diabetes? Clinical studies continue to point to periodontal disease as a risk factor for these costly chronic conditions.
In response, OraMedica International, LLC has created the “HealthyGates Dental Health Risk Assessment,” a web-based interactive dental consumer questionnaire and educational tool. Employers can seamlessly incorporate it into their wellness and disease management programs to help alert their workforce to early warning signs of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and immune-compromising infections that can be present in the mouth.
OraMedica, a Pennsylvania-based dental health and wellness company, recognizes that dental questions are commonly left out of most health risk assessments. “The mouth can be a mirror of general health long before the signs and symptoms of chronic diseases show up on medical tests.” says Dr. Andrea Brockman, President of OraMedica, a dentist and former coronary care nurse. “Identifying dental risk factors as it relates to stress, smoking, lifestyle, and nutrition and the links to heart disease, obesity, cancer, infections, and chronic pain can prove to be quite beneficial for the health of the individual as well as the company.”
This tool can function as a funnel into existing wellness initiatives, thus preventing low risk populations from progressing into a higher chronic-health risk group.
The HealthyGates Dental Health Risk Assessment raises the individual’s level of awareness of how their dental health plays a part in weight management, stress, pain, and chronic illness. The connections of dental conditions relative to overall health and the financial ramifications are explained in the white paper: “Reining In Runaway Healthcare Costs: How Adding Oral Health-Care Consumerism Education and Dental Risk Assessments to Health and Wellness Programs Pay Companies Handsome Dividends.” The paper can be downloaded by visiting www.oramedica.com.
Dr. Vincent DiLorenzo, CEO of OraMedica International, LLC explains that, “The HealthyGates Dental Health Risk Assessment was created because 30 years as a business owner, employer, and dentist has taught me that controlling medical plan costs requires a strategy that keeps employees healthy.” A crucial step in that strategy is to identify the pertinent oral health risk factors that contribute to chronic ill health, he adds. “Delaying or avoiding necessary treatment can lead to more serious health problems and is most often the culprit in increased end-care expenses and healthcare utilization.”
Dr. Andrea Brockman will be speaking to dentists and physicians on February 17, 2007 in Tempe, AZ at the International Academy of Biological Dentistry and Medicine discussing when referrals should be made and how to coordinate medical and dental treatment for better outcomes.
About OraMedica International, LLC
OraMedica International, LLC (www.oramedica.com) is a dental health and wellness company that provides dental advocacy educational products, programming, and insurance strategies for businesses, organizations, and insurance companies to lower health care costs and increase productivity in the workplace. Employers are offered a health cost-containing risk-lowering dental benefit that is a critical yet missing component to most corporate health and wellness initiatives.
Media contact:
Dr. Vincent DiLorenzo
215-836-9950
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