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Session 3 of the 100-Day Sprint
Background
Oral diseases remain among the most prevalent noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) across Asia, affecting people throughout the life course and placing a significant burden on individuals, families and health systems. Countries across the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region and South-East Asia Region have committed to strengthening oral health through regional action plans and by advancing universal health coverage (UHC).
The 16th Asian Chief Dental Officers Meeting (ACDOM) serves as a regional platform for Chief Dental Officers in Asia to exchange experiences, strengthen collaboration and accelerate implementation of oral health commitments. For the first time, the meeting is being jointly organized by the WHO Regional Offices for South-East Asia and for the Western Pacific and the ACDOM Secretariat.
This year’s meeting introduces a 100-Day Sprint, bringing together oral health and UHC leads and technical experts to support countries in strengthening integration of oral health within national UHC benefit packages. Through the Sprint, participating countries will develop, refine, cost and operationalize country-specific essential oral health-care benefit packages using WHO tools, including the Service Package Delivery and Implementation (SPDI) Platform.
The in-person 16th Asian Chief Dental Officers Meeting represents Session 3 and the midpoint of the 100-Day Sprint, providing an opportunity for countries to review progress, exchange experiences, identify challenges and refine their approaches before continuing with the remaining Sprint sessions.
100-Day Sprint
| Session | Date | Format | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session 1 (Day 0) | 19 Aug | Virtual | Setting the Scene and Introducing Key Principles and Frameworks |
| Session 2 | 16 Sep | Virtual | Introduction to the SPDI Platform and Initial Mapping Exercise |
| Session 3 | 27-29 Sep | In-person, 16th Asian Chief Dental Officer Meeting, Malaysia | Review and Refinement of Oral Health Service Packages |
| Session 4 | 14 Oct | Virtual | Finalizing National Essential Oral Health Services Packages and Costing Exercise |
| Session 5 (Day 100) | 26 Nov | Virtual | Country Presentations and Closing of the 100-Day Sprint |
Objectives
- Leverage the 100-Day Sprint to define priority implementation actions for oral health in countries;
- Strengthen national capacity to design, cost and operationalize country-specific essential oral health care packages using SPDI platform; and
- Explore cross-country collaboration to expand access to essential oral health supplies and products, including harmonized specifications and pricing, and improve supply chains for essential dental preparations and medicines.
Expected outcomes
- A draft country-specific essential oral health care benefit package developed using the SPDI platform and aligned with WHO’s Essential Oral Health Care package
- A strengthened regional network in Asia of oral health and UHC leaders, fostering collaboration among South-East Asia and Western Pacific countries, WHO offices and WHO Collaborating Centres to support sustained implementation beyond the meeting
Participants
- Chief Dental Officers and national oral health programme leads;
- National focal points responsible for universal health coverage, health financing and health systems;
- Representatives from WHO country offices, regional offices and headquarters;
- WHO Collaborating Centres; and
- Academic institutions and technical partners.