Lay summary
Many New Zealanders experience tooth decay and gum disease, but most oral conditions are preventable. We want to empower patients to take control of their health through good oral health practices at home. We also want to make it easier for patients to obtain the advice of an oral health clinician to monitor their oral health. Working together with patient groups (including Māori and Pacific) we will co-design an AI-assisted easy-to-use smart-phone-based application. We will then test the efficacy of this application with patients through clinical application and interviews, and use feedback from both patients and clinicians to improve this application. This app will help promote better oral health and alleviate barriers to accessing oral health care advice for all New Zealanders, especially in communities with the highest needs. Our research has the potential to reduce tooth loss, mitigate high treatment costs and improve patient outcomes and quality of life.