Evaluation of a tailored oral health promotion intervention for Syrian former refugees in New Zealand.

Refugees have high rates of oral health problems and face hardships in accessing available dental services. This project intended to promote better oral health knowledge and self-care in a group of Syrian refugees that are resettled in Dunedin, New Zealand. We recruited 63 Syrian former refugees who answered a questionnaire on their oral home care, smoking, sugar consumption and use of dental services. A group of 39 people took part in focus group meetings to help design oral health educational material in both the Arabic and English languages. The remaining 20 were dentally examined for periodontal health, dental caries, gingivitis and oral hygiene. All participants received individual monthly oral health messages taken from the leaflets designed with the focus group participants. After 6 months, the same people answered follow-up questionnaires and those who had been dentally examined were re-examined. Participants reported significantly more favourable oral health attitudes and behaviours at follow-up, and oral health among those who had been clinically examined was greatly improved. Oral health education resources tailored to the language and culture of former refugees may help to improve oral self-care and health.