Quinonez – Infant Oral Health, Prevention and Motivational Interviewing and Silver Diamine Fluoride-FriMorningMICordero

FriMorningMICordero

Pdf Summary

This document outlines how Motivational Interviewing (MI) can be used in pediatric dentistry to improve preventive behaviors and overall health. It begins by emphasizing that health outcomes are strongly influenced by behavior (along with environment, genetics, and health care), yet patient adherence is often poor: roughly one-third to one-half of patients do not follow medical advice, with particularly high noncompliance rates for behavior-change recommendations. The presentation also notes that dentistry often underuses structured communication techniques, supporting the need for better conversational tools during dental visits.<br /><br />Motivational Interviewing is presented as an empathetic yet directive, patient-centered communication style designed to explore and reduce ambivalence and resistance, and to strengthen a patient’s own motivation for change. Four guiding MI principles are highlighted: (1) express empathy through reflective, nonjudgmental listening; (2) develop discrepancy by helping patients recognize conflicts between current behaviors and desired goals; (3) roll with resistance by avoiding arguments, reframing, and inviting new perspectives while letting patients generate solutions; and (4) support self-efficacy by affirming strengths and emphasizing past successes to build confidence.<br /><br />The document lists practical strategies to elicit “change talk,” including asking open-ended evocative questions, using decisional balance (pros/cons of change), asking for elaboration and examples, looking back and forward to compare past and future outcomes, querying extremes, exploring goals and values, “coming alongside” resistance, and using scaling questions to assess importance and confidence. These strategies align with the OARS framework: Open-ended questions, Affirmations, Reflective listening, and Summarizing.<br /><br />Evidence is cited that MI is effective across health behaviors (meta-analysis effect sizes 0.25–0.57), with a randomized trial showing a meaningful effect for reducing early childhood caries (ECC) (effect size 0.54).

Keywords

Motivational Interviewing

pediatric dentistry

preventive behaviors

patient adherence

behavior change counseling

OARS framework

change talk

reflective listening

early childhood caries (ECC) prevention

scaling questions