In 2010, the oral health component of the Canadian Health Measures Survey found that the oral health of Canadians has been steadily improving over 40 years. Yet, a number of Canadians—roughly one-third—were shown to have oral health issues. This considerable level of unmet need for oral health care draws attention to the challenge of how to improve oral health outcomes in Canada.

Since Canada does not currently have an overall comprehensive national oral plan for the provision of oral health care to its population, the Canadian Dental Association has initiated a process in collaboration with relevant stakeholders to develop a series of actions to improve the oral health of Canadians.  One of those actions is the development of a National Oral Health Clearinghouse, that is updated on a continuous basis and contains relevant information on oral health programs and initiatives across Canada.  It is hoped that information on these programs will assist policy makers and health system administrators in gleaning best practices from one jurisdiction that can be replicated in another.

In summary, this site will house information on oral health programs and initiatives across Canada,  predominantly in the public sector,  but also in the academic and private sectors that are specifically geared towards reducing cost and access barriers.  The site  is dynamic in nature, and it is hoped that oral health and other stakeholders submit information on oral health programs, initiatives and reports to the clearinghouse.   

The site is administered by the Canadian Dental Association.  Please refer to the Contact section of this website for more information regarding where to submit content ideas or comments.