You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can’t communicate them, you won’t get anywhere. The most basic of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood. Motivational Interviewing, a different way to talk with parents that is collaborative, supportive, respectful and inspiring, helps you share brilliant ideas about kids and healthy teeth.
Want to inspire behavior change in the parents in your program? When talking with parents, remember these Tooth Talk tips:
- Persuasion, advice and threats don’t work. Avoid being aggressive, loud or combative.
- Calm open-ended questions and two-way conversation do work.
- After sharing information, ask, “If you were going to do this, which of the ideas I shared might work best for you?”
- Pay attention, listen, show understanding and be empathetic. Success comes because of your interpersonal interaction.
To learn more about motivational interviewing and how to help parents improve their children’s dental health, see the video Tooth Talk Moments.
To see other short, helpful videos about tooth topics for tots, click on the Videos tab.
