Oral health literacy of mothers belonging to multi-cultural families in Gangneung City: a case study / 대한구강보건학회지

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to identify the oral health literacy level of mothers in multi-cultural families and promote their oral health. METHODS: Participants were 46 mothers belonging to multi-cultural families who participated in the Oral health promotion program for multi-cultural families in Gangneung. For measurement of oral health literacy, 30 subjects were analyzed. Six pre-trained investigators conducted an interview with the mothers. Thirty-six mothers belonging to general families in Gangneung were included, and 30 subjects were analyzed. The Oral Health Literacy Instrument for Korean Children's Caregiver was used. Data were analyzed using SPSS 20.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). RESULTS: The mean oral health literacy score for mothers from multi-cultural families was 10.83 out of 22.0, which was lower than the score for mothers from general families (P<0.05). The percentage of mothers from multi-cultural families whose oral health literacy was inadequate was 63.3%. Oral health literacy scores were significantly different by Korean fluency level (P<0.05). The correlation between Korean communication level and reading comprehension score was significant (P<0.01). The correlation between Korean communication level and total oral health literacy score was also significant (P<0.05). Finally, there was a significant correlation between oral health knowledge and reading comprehension (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The oral health literacy score for mothers from multi-cultural families was lower than that for mother belonging to general families, and 63.3% had inadequate knowledge. Oral health professionals should use easy terms and consider the Korean communication capacity of mothers in their professional service.