eHealth as a tool to support dental hygiene of frail elderly : an explorative study

Abstract Background: Good dental hygiene is important to prevent or reduce frailty in the elderly. Research shows that 66% of elderly patients admitted to a nursing home have bad dental hygiene. During their stay, dental hygiene remains moderate to bad. To start addressing this issue, a group of students (nursing, occupational therapy, computer science and health care technology), part of an exchange collaboration facilitated through our Vitale Delta Research Program, have been researching 1) why caregivers struggle to give good dental hygiene, 2) which eHealth applications could support the (professional) caretakers and the elderly in performing appropriate dental hygiene, and 3) to develop an app to support dental hygiene.