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Since its emergence in China, the COVID-19 pandemic has become the number 1 health challenge in the world with all affected countries trying to learn from each other’s experiences. When it comes to health services, dental care does not seem to be a priority area, despite the fact that it is among the highest risk medical specialisations in terms of spreading the infection. Using the Department of Community Dentistry of Semmelweis University as a case study, the objective of this paper is to introduce and analyze the system and organizational level measures, which have been implemented in dental care in Hungary during the first months of the COVID-19 outbreak. The system level measures to promote social distancing, to reduce the use of health services and to protect high risk health professionals, together with the deployment of protective equipment and the reorganization of patient pathways at the organizational level proved to be effective in keeping the outbreak in control. There are two, less frequently mentioned ingredients of successful coping with the COVID-19 challenge. First, mental health support is at least as important as physical protection. Second, most of the interventions do not require big financial investments, but behavioural change, which in turn requires leadership and change management skills.

Abstract: Introduction: More than 1 billion people in the world live with some form of disability. According to the 2011 census in Hungary, their number can be around 500 000. These people are considered as a vulnerable group even from a dental point of view, since the loss of function makes regular oral hygienic routine and dentistry control more difficult. In 2015, The Department of Community Dentistry and The National Institute of Medical Rehabilitation started to operate together a dental office to examine the dental and oral hygiene condition of the inpatients and to make their oral rehabilitation. Aim:aAim: A total of 608 patients have gone through a full dental examination including a stomato-oncological screening. From this we gathered comprehensive information on the oral health of patients currently undergoing rehabilitation and living with disabilities. Method: This study was approved by the Medical Research Council. Clinical examinations were done on the basis of the recommendation by WHO. We analysed the DMF-T values, restorative index, periodontal status and lesions of the oral mucosa. From a survey of 20 questions we asked about oral hygiene practices, toothbrushing frequency, last visit to a dentist, eating habits, addictions and social background. Results: The patients had poor oral hygiene. The number of lost teeth is high, but the prosthetic care is not satisfying. The DMF-T value was 20.5, from this D-T = 2.6, M-T = 11.2, F-T = 6.7. The patients’ complaints about dental and oral mucosal lesions are minimal compared to their general dental condition. A majority of them did not experienced toothaches in the last 12 months. The last dental checkup in the case of most patients exceeds 12 months. Conclusions: The oral hygiene of patients living with some form of disability is poor since their daily oral hygiene routine and care in practice are not solved. Orv Hetil. 2018; 159(52): 2202–2206.