Arlington, Va.—The Dental Trade Alliance has a new ad campaign designed to encourage people to visit their dentist despite the recent economic downturn.
Dental Trade Alliance campaign The "Oral Healthcare Can't Wait" awareness campaign urges patients not to shortchange their oral health. The campaign includes seven ads.
"These days, people are cutting back on a lot. Make sure your dental appointments aren't one of them," note the ads, explaining that making and keeping regular appointments is the key to good oral health. As a courtesy, the Association will run one of the ads in the October issue of The Journal of the American Dental Association. The ads also will appear in dental trade publications.
"One of the reasons we decided to do this was the realization that patients were postponing oral health care because of the economy," said Gary Price, DTA chief executive officer. "We can't let that happen. Our goal was to sponsor a campaign with all of our dental friends."
"The ADA was delighted to hear that the DTA was interested in doing this campaign, and we applaud their efforts," ADA President John S. Findley said. "In today's world, the necessity of collaboration to improve health is obvious. It is good to see DTA moving in this direction."
Mr. Price hopes the message will encourage patients to seek and accept recommended oral care treatment.
The DTA Web site lets consumers know that "the negative effects of postponing oral care treatment are significant... But it doesn't have to be this way. Although we face economic challenges on a global basis, the majority of Americans still have the ability to make continued and comprehensive oral care an integrated part of their lives."
Mr. Price said DTA hopes to continue the campaign, even as the economy improves. The ads also point to the possible association between poor oral health and other health problems as reasons for patients to make visiting the dentist a priority.
"We hope this is sustainable for many years to come," he said.