Dental CE Course: Identification, Intervention, and Treatment Considerations of Domestic Violence, Sexual Abuse, Denta

Sexual Abuse / Dental Fears: Research indicates that many patients have dental fears associated with histories of trauma in their childhoods. Many survivors are unaware of the potential long-term consequences as related to their abuse history. This segment is designed to assist participants to better understand and help dentally treat the staggering number of people who have been sexually abused. This is not a course that "will bring you down" or is only "fluff." There will be a little humor thrown in the mix as well as a lot of information.
Domestic Violence: Domestic Violence has been coined an unacknowledged epidemic. Nearly 5.3 million domestic violence victimizations occur each year in the U.S. This part of the program will assist the dental professional in gaining comfort to ask questions about various types of abuse and/or neglect. Signs and symptoms of possible victims, appropriate questions to ask using the SAFE question interviewing technique, and what to do with the information will be discussed. Appropriate documentation, referral, and reporting will also be discussed.
Eating Disorders: Dental health professionals are likely to encounter patients with eating disorders, a serious illness that requires an interdisciplinary approach to treatment. The successful treatment of eating disorders is often dependent upon early recognition and referral to appropriate professionals. This segment will address the clinical skills needed to assist the dental health professional in the recognition, intervention, referral, and treatment/management of patients with eating disorders.
Mandatory Reporting: Dental patients with Psycho-Social considerations such as those individuals who may be victims of domestic violence, adult survivors of sexual abuse, and who may have/had an eating disorder all require special knowledge and attention. Within this segment the dental professional will learn their ethical responsibilities and legal obligations when treating patients with unique needs as well as techniques in addressing patients with Psycho-Social considerations.
At the completion of the course participants will be able to:
Understand the behaviors, management and treatment of patients who have a history of sexual abuse
Recognize the signs and symptoms of domestic violence for victim identification, 'what' questions to ask and 'how', appropriate referral, and documentation of the event
Understand the etiology, clinical manifestations, and oral health management of patients with eating disorders
Understand the ethical and legal responsibilities of dental profession