scholarly journals Inequity in access to dental care services explains current socioeconomic disparities in oral health: The Swedish National Surveys of Public Health 2004-2005

2006 ◽  
Vol 60 (12) ◽  
pp. 1027-1033 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Wamala ◽  
J. Merlo ◽  
G. Bostrom
2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  

Abstract Oral health is a central element of general health with significant impact in terms of pain, suffering, impairment of function and reduced quality of life. Although most oral disease can be prevented by health promotion strategies and routine access to primary oral health care, the GBD study 2017 estimated that oral diseases affect over 3.5 billion people worldwide (Watt et al, 2019). Given the importance of oral health and its potential contribution to achieving universal health coverage (UHC), it has received increased attention in public health debates in recent years. However, little is known about the large variations across countries in terms of service delivery, coverage and financing of oral health. There is a lack of international comparison and understanding of who delivers oral health services, how much is devoted to oral health care and who funds the costs for which type of treatment (Eaton et al., 2019). Yet, these aspects are central for understanding the scope for improvement regarding financial protection against costs of dental care and equal access to services in each country. This workshop aims to present the comparative research on dental care coverage in Europe, North America and Australia led by the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies. Three presentations will look at dental care coverage using different methods and approaches. They will compare how well the population is covered for dental care especially within Europe and North America considering the health systems design and expenditure level on dental care, using the WHO coverage cube as analytical framework. The first presentation shows results of a cross-country Health Systems in Transition (HiT) review on dental care. It provides a comparative review and analysis of financing, coverage and access in 31 European countries, describing the main trends also in the provision of dental care. The second presentation compares dental care coverage in eight jurisdictions (Australia (New South Wales), Canada (Alberta), England, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, and the United States) with a particular focus on older adults. The third presentation uses a vignette approach to map the extent of coverage of dental services offered by statutory systems (social insurance, compulsory insurance, NHS) in selected countries in Europe and North America. This workshop provides the opportunity of a focussed discussion on coverage of dental care, which is often neglected in the discussion on access to health services and universal health coverage. The objectives of the workshop are to discuss the oral health systems in an international comparative setting and to draw lessons on best practices and coverage design. The World Conference on Public Health is hence a good opportunity for this workshop that contributes to frame the discussion on oral health systems in a global perspective. Key messages There is large degree of variation in the extent to which the costs of dental care are covered by the statutory systems worldwide with implications for oral health outcomes and financial protection. There is a need for a more systematic collection of oral health indicators to make analysis of reliable and comparable oral health data possible.


2018 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Freitas ◽  
Lauren M. Kaplan ◽  
Lina Tieu ◽  
Claudia Ponath ◽  
David Guzman ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Davis AL ◽  
◽  
Zare H ◽  
Kanwar O ◽  
McCleary R ◽  
...  

Objective: The authors conducted an integrative literature review of recent studies that explored the impact of interventions implemented in the U.S. that focused on improving access to dental care for low-income and vulnerable populations. Methods: The authors conducted an integrative literature review of studies published between 2012-2018 that addressed six oral health policy spheres. 1) Community-based dental access programs; (2) Medicaid reimbursement and expansion; (3) Student loan support; (4) Oral health services in non-traditional settings and dental residency programs; (5) Programs to improve oral health literacy; and (6) Use of dental therapists. Results: The authors included 39 articles for qualitative synthesis. Numerous public health initiatives and programs exist in the US aimed at increasing access to quality oral health care. Medicaid expansion, increased Medicaid fee-for-service reimbursement rates, and state loan repayment programs have demonstrated some success in improving access among underserved populations. A diversified dental workforce, with community dental health workers and mid-level providers like dental therapists, as well as interprofessional training of nurses and primary-care physicians in oral health have also shown positive impacts in advancing health equity. Further studies are needed to understand how oral health literacy programs can affect access and utilization of dental services. Conclusions: Improvements to the oral health care safety net will require a holistic and multifaceted approach in order to reduce oral health disparities. Policy levers should work, not in isolation, but rather in complementary fashion to one another.


2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 533-540
Author(s):  
Bruna Mara Ruas ◽  
Lia Silva Castilho ◽  
Natália Cristina Ruy Carneiro ◽  
Natália Mendes de Matos Cardoso ◽  
Augusto Barbosa Reis ◽  
...  

Abstract The present study aimed to analyze factors associated with access of dental care services by Brazilian hemodialysis patients. A cross-sectional study was carried out with 467 hemodialysis patients aging from 19 to 90 years in two renal therapy centers located in the cities of Contagem and Belo Horizonte, Southeastern Brazil. Data were collected through an oral clinical examination of the patients and the application of a structured questionnaire. The dependent variable was the access to dental care, measured by the question "Have you consulted with a dentist in last six months?". The mean age of participants was 49.9 years. The average number of teeth present in the mouth was 19.3. An average of 1.5 teeth with dental caries cavities lesion was diagnosed among hemodialysis patients. One-third of the sample had gone to the dentist in the last six months (27.8%). The access to dental care was associated with formal education (OR = 1.5 [1.1-2.4]), professional advising to consult with a dentist (OR = 2.1 [1.2-3.8]) and prevalence of dental caries (OR = 2.1 [1.3-3.2]). Hemodialysis patients with eight or more years of formal education, who received professional advising to consult with a dentist and without dental caries cavities had higher chances obtaining access to dental care.


2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan C. McKernan ◽  
Julie C. Reynolds ◽  
Astha Singhal ◽  
Raymond Kuthy ◽  
Peter C. Damiano

UNICIÊNCIAS ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 92
Author(s):  
Karina Semencio Avelino ◽  
Ilma Carla de Souza Porcelli ◽  
Valéria Campos Mariano Francelino ◽  
Ermelinda Matsuura ◽  
Nathalia Maciel Corsi ◽  
...  

A cárie precoce repercute, negativamente, na vida da criança. Este estudo avaliou o nível de conhecimento, práticas maternas e o padrão de saúde bucal de crianças assistidas pela rede pública de saúde de um município do Sul do Brasil. Foram analisados 279 prontuários de crianças que estavam sendo atendidas na clínica de bebê de uma Unidade Básica de Saúde. O conhecimento, as práticas nos cuidados com a saúde bucal infantil e o perfil sócio demográfico das famílias foram identificados em entrevistas realizadas com as mães no início do atendimento. Verificou-se os procedimentos clínicos-preventivos realizados, número de consultas e faltas e se avaliou a condição de saúde bucal da criança na última consulta. Foram aplicados os testes Mann-Whitney e Kruskal-Wallis, fixando-se o nível de significância em 5%. As mães apresentaram um conhecimento razoável, porém suas práticas, principalmente, com cuidados alimentares das crianças eram precárias. Procedimentos preventivos predominaram na atenção odontológica oferecida, contudo, 20,8% das crianças desenvolveram cárie dentária, sendo o índice ceo-d médio igual a 0,53 (DP=1,35). A maior severidade de cárie se associou à maior idade da criança (<0,001) e da mãe (p=0,006), menor renda familiar (0.036), maior tempo de tratamento (<0,001) e maior número de faltas às consultas (<0,001). A atenção odontológica é importante a partir do primeiro ano de vida, assim como as ações em saúde bucal, com atividades educativas direcionadas aos programas pré-natais, além do desenvolvimento de estratégias para aumentar a adesão das mães/ crianças aos programas promocionais em saúde bucal que são oferecidos pela rede pública de saúde. Palavras-chave: Criança. Saúde Bucal. Mães. Cárie Dentária. Conhecimento. AbstractEarly caries has a negative impact on the child's life. This study evaluated the level of knowledge, maternal practices and oral health pattern of children assisted by the public health network of a municipality in the south of Brazil. Information was analyzed from 279 medical records of children treated at the baby clinic of a Basic-Health-Unit. The knowledge, practices in care of children's oral health and sociodemographic profile of families were identified in interviews with mothers at the beginning of care. The clinical-preventive procedures performed, number of consultations, absences were checked and the child's oral health condition was evaluated at the last visit. The Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests were applied, setting the level of significance at 5%. The mothers presented a reasonable level of knowledge, however, their practices,particularly those about care related to feeding their children were precarious. Preventive procedures predominated the offered dental care, however, 20.8% of the children developed dental caries - mean dmf-t index 0.53 (SD = 1.35). The highest level of caries severity was associated with the highest age of both the child (<0.001) and mother (p = 0.006), lower family income (0.036), longer treatment time (<0.001) and higher number absences to the appointments. Dental care is important from the first year of life onwards, as well as oral health actions, with educational activities directed towards prenatal programs and the development of strategies to increase the adherence of mothers /children to the promotional programs offered by the public health network. Keywords: Child. Oral health. Mothers. Dental Caries. Knowledge. 


Author(s):  
Akemi Nishide ◽  
Misuzu Fujita ◽  
Yasunori Sato ◽  
Kengo Nagashima ◽  
Sho Takahashi ◽  
...  

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chaiana Piovesan ◽  
José Leopoldo Ferreira Antunes ◽  
Renata Saraiva Guedes ◽  
Thiago Machado Ardenghi

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliane Winkelmann ◽  
Jesús Gómez Rossi ◽  
Falk Schwendicke ◽  
Antonia Dimova ◽  
Elka Atanasova ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Oral health has received increased attention over the past few years coupled with rising awareness on the impact of limited dental care coverage for oral health and general health and well-being. The purpose of the study was to compare the statutory coverage and access to dental care for adult services in 11 European countries using a vignette approach.Methods: We used three patient vignettes to highlight the differences of the dimensions of coverage and access to dental care (coverage, cost-sharing and accessibility). The three vignettes describe typical care pathways for patients with the most common oral health conditions (caries, periodontal disease, edentulism). The vignettes were completed by health services researchers knowledgeable on dental care, dentists, or teams consisting of a health systems expert working together with dental specialists.Results: Completed vignettes were received from 11 countries, including Bulgaria, Estonia, France, Germany, Republic of Ireland (Ireland), Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia and Sweden. While emergency dental care, tooth extraction and restorative care for acute pain due to carious lesions are covered in most responding countries, root canal treatment, periodontal care and prosthetic restoration often require cost-sharing or are entirely excluded from the benefit basket. Regular dental visits are also limited to one visit per year in many countries. Beyond financial barriers due to out-of-pocket payments, patients may experience very different kinds of physical barriers to access dental care. Major access barriers to public dental care represent the limited availability of contracted dentists especially in rural areas and the unequal distribution and lack of specialised dentists.Conclusions: According to the results, statutory coverage of dental care varies across European countries while access barriers are largely similar. Many dental services require substantial cost-sharing in most countries which in turn leads to high out-of-pocket spending. The individual socioeconomic status is thus a main determinant for access to dental care, but also other factors such as geography, age and comorbidities can inhibit access and affect outcomes. Moreover, coverage in most oral health systems is targeted at treatment and less at preventative oral health care.


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