Collecting and Analyzing REAL Data

Established in 2007, Colorado Total Smiles is a nonprofit located in the Denver Metro area that provides oral health care services to underserved communities. CTS collects race and ethnicity data from its pediatric patients through its treatment consent form. When asked to complete the consent form, patients are informed of the purpose of collecting demographic information and assured their names will not be used in the data analysis process. The racial and ethnic categories on the form align with those of the 2010 census and also include an open-ended other category where patients can list an identity that is not provided. With the growing number of patients selecting other, however, CTS plans to identify the most commonly listed racial and ethnic groups and add them to the list of provided options. Although CTS did not experience any resistance from patients, some staff members originally were uncertain as to why the program was collecting patient demographic information and were reluctant to do so. CTS provided training on the importance of collecting race and ethnicity data to give staff a greater understanding of how the data can help improve their service to communities facing disparities. Staff members also are able to share, not only with patients but also parents, teachers and community partners, the program's efforts to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities. The impact of the organization's willingness to take the time to explain its reasons for collecting race and ethnicity data has likely contributed to the increased response rate to this question over the years. In addition to race and ethnicity information, CTS also collects demographic data on attributes such as language, insurance type, zip code of residence and computer access. This information is then linked to race and ethnicity data.