Workplace-based oral health awareness campaign shown to be clinically effective.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Adult↗
Biomedical subjects
R Croucher
Publications and source records attributed to R Croucher.
Burnout and issues of the work environment reported by general dental practitioners in the United Kingdom.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate causes of burnout among general dental practitioners. DESIGN: A cross-sectional investigation. SETTING: General dental practices in two areas of the UK and a group of continuing education sessions. SUBJECTS: 325 general dental practitioners, composed of two random samples recruited from two areas of the United Kingdom and an opportunistic sample, recruited from continuing education sessions. OUTCOME MEASURES: Levels of burnout, as measured by scores on one of the three burnout sub-scales--emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and personal accomplishment. RESULTS: Respondents were more likely to report high levels of emotional exhaustion and low levels of personal accomplishment if they worked in practices with few other dentists. Those respondents reporting high levels of depersonalisation were more likely to provide a greater proportion of care through the National Health Service. CONCLUSIONS: Burnout in this sample of general dental practitioners was related to features of their work organisation structure rather than necessarily due to an involvement with patients or the respondents' personal characteristics. Levels of social support in the workplace, measured here by the number of dentists in a practice, appear to have a protective effect against some aspects of burnout.
Adult↗
The relationship between life-events and periodontitis. A case-control study.
This case-control study (n = 100 dental patients, matched for age and sex) investigated the role of life-events in periodontitis. Data collected included life events, tobacco use, oral health behaviours and socio-demographics. The results of conditional simple logistic regression analysis showed that periodontitis was associated with the negative impact of life-events (p < 0.01), the number of negative life-events (p < 0.05), high levels of dental plaque (p < 0.01), tobacco smoking (p < 0.01) and being unemployed (p < 0.05). These associations remained statistically significant after adjusting for oral health behaviour and socio-demographic variables, but not tobacco smoking (p > 0.05). Marital status became statistically significant after adjusting for the other variables (p < 0.05). A model is suggested to explain the pathways through which life events may affect periodontal health. It was concluded that psychosocial factors and oral health risk behaviours cluster together as important determinants of periodontitis.
Adolescent↗
Oral health knowledge, beliefs and practices of a sample of Chinese elders in Inner London, UK, aged 54 years and over: a pilot investigation.
OBJECTIVES: To explore the self-reported oral health and health behaviours of a sample of Inner London Chinese elders and the impact of their self-reported oral health on their social functioning and eating ability. DESIGN: Cross sectional. SETTING: Luncheon clubs in Central and East London, UK. SUBJECTS: 54 Chinese elders aged 54-81 years. INTERVENTION: A structured questionnaire, administered by two interviewers in Cantonese. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Knowledge and beliefs about the causes and prevention of tooth decay and gum disease, the oral conditions experienced in the previous twelve months and the impact of these conditions. RESULTS: Overall health was rated more positively than oral health, although those who reported below average oral health were more likely to report below average overall health. Whilst over half thought that sugar and sweet food could cause tooth decay, only 19% thought that poor oral hygiene could cause gum disease. Over half thought that "hot air" caused gum disease. Three quarters brushed their teeth at least twice a day. Two thirds had experienced at least one oral condition in the previous twelve months, with the more elderly being more likely to report this. Social impacts affected 41% of the sample whilst 44% suffered at least one dietary impact. CONCLUSIONS: The burden of oral conditions is substantial, especially on the more elderly members, impacting on the performance of social functions. These burdens indicate a need for oral health services. Beliefs in the traditional Chinese explanation of "hot air" as a cause of gum disease were common. Health promotion effort should consider these when developing health messages.
Aged↗
Self-assessed bleeding and plaque as methods for improving gingival health in adolescents.
The aim of this longitudinal study was to compare the effectiveness, in terms of cognitive and clinical changes, of two oral self-care promoting interventions based on a self-assessment of bleeding from gums or of presence of plaque. Adolescent students (age 14.0 + 0.7 years) from two health districts in Helsinki, Finland, participated in this one-year study. The self-assessment of bleeding group (n = 172) recorded bleeding during tooth brushing and inter-proximal cleaning with toothpicks on a single session. The self-assessment of plaque group (n = 156) recorded the presence of plaque with disclosing dye. Both programmes resulted in comparable clinical improvement in bleeding on probing over 9 months. Increased awareness of gingivitis was associated with clinical improvement. The subjects' socio-economic background, baseline gingival health status and age were statistically significantly associated with gingival health improvement during the follow-up. The results support earlier reports on self-assessment and suggest that both self-assessment approaches are beneficial for promoting gingival health in adolescents.
Adolescent↗
Satisfaction with care of patients attending a dedicated dental clinic: comparisons between 1989 and 1994.
This investigation aimed to audit patient satisfaction with care at a dedicated dental clinic, using previously developed standards and criteria. A self-complete questionnaire was administered to a group of 161 patients assessing the dimensions of care availability, affective behaviour and technical competence. Comparisons with baseline showed a high but slightly decreased level of satisfaction with technical competence, a significantly higher level of satisfaction with the affective behaviour of the clinic staff but a continuing level of dissatisfaction with the availability of care. Respondents with AIDS reported higher levels of satisfaction for all 3 dimensions. Women were less satisfied with the availability of care. The results indicate the inter-related nature of the dimensions of technical competence and care availability. Satisfaction with care availability will only improve if initiatives beyond the clinic are introduced to increase the overall supply of dental services available to this population.
Clinical Competence↗
Criteria of good dental practice generated by general dental practitioners and patients.
A survey was carried out asking patients to evaluate the criteria of good dental practice proposed by patients and dentists. A total of 344 patients from 4 different general dental practices in South East England evaluated 16 criteria of good dental practice. Eight criteria were generated by 30 general dental practitioners and the other eight by 30 patients. Questionnaires containing the 8 pairs of criteria randomly assigned by a computer were drawn up, with each pair containing one patient and one general dental practitioner criterion. Patients were asked to indicate their preference. The number of times each criterion was preferred was scored and ranked. The three highest ranked criteria were explanation of procedures, sterilisation/hygiene and dentist's skills (all criteria proposed from patients), whilst the three lowest ranked criteria were up-to-date equipment, pleasant decor and surroundings and good practice image (all criteria proposed from dentists). Overall the criteria proposed by patients as a group scored significantly more highly than those proposed by dentists as a group. There was variation in rankings relating to the sex, age, pattern of attendance and social class of the respondents.
Adolescent↗
Quality assurance practices in the community dental services within the North and South Thames Regions.
The aim of this study was to describe the progress of implementing Quality Assurance (QA) programmes within the Community Dental Services (CDS) in the North and South Thames Regions. Nearly 70 per cent of CDS managers responded to the survey questionnaire. The results indicate that although definite progress has been achieved in most services, further progress is being limited by a lack of co-operation between different departments and the minimal support and guidance being given to those responsible for the management and development of the QA programmes.
Community Dentistry↗
The behavioural sciences in the undergraduate curriculum: which department should teach them?
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Behavioral Sciences↗
Levels of burnout in general dental practitioners in the south-east of England.
There is some evidence to suggest that dentists suffer a high level of job-related stress. Specifically, social interaction between dentist and patient is considered to be a type of job-related stress which may produce 'burnout', a syndrome of emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment that can occur in individuals whose work involves close personal contact with their clients. A study was carried out during January to June 1992 to assess the levels of burnout, using the Maslach Burnout Inventory, in three samples of British GDPs recruited from the south-east of England. A total of 440 dentists were surveyed and 340 usable replies were returned. There were high levels of burnout in the British dentists. A number of demographic variables relating to marital status, educational status, time since qualification, numbers of dentists in the practice, number of days per week spent in practice and the proportion of NHS/private work undertaken were identified as being associated with some aspects of the burnout syndrome.
Burnout, Professional↗
Dental visiting behaviour and experiences of men with HIV.
To ascertain the dental visiting behaviour and experiences of men with HIV infection but without AIDS, a self-complete questionnaire was administered to convenience samples of men attending two genito-urinary medicine clinics. A total of 146 men completed questionnaires between December 1991 and June 1992. Of these, 85% had been regular or occasional attenders before diagnosis, 16% had not been to a dentist since diagnosis and 51% had changed their dentist. Although 63% had been to a general dental practitioner (GDP) at least once since diagnosis, half of them had withheld their HIV status at some time to obtain treatment. Of the 33% who had told their GDP of the diagnosis, half had been refused or offered limited treatment. The most common reasons for changing dentist, not visiting or withholding HIV status were concerns about the attitudes of the dental team and about confidentiality. Although regular oral examinations are of special importance to people with HIV their access to dental care is limited by their perceptions of dentists and the reported behaviour of dentists.
Adolescent↗
The satisfaction of men with HIV infection attending a dedicated dental clinic: a controlled study.
A self-complete questionnaire to assess satisfaction with dental care was administered to two groups of dental patients: men with asymptomatic HIV infection attending a dedicated dental clinic and men, presumed to be HIV negative, attending a general dental practice. Both settings were staffed by the same dentist. Men attending the dedicated clinic expressed satisfaction with the technical competence of their treatment and the affective behaviour of their dentist comparable with satisfaction expressed by participants at the general dental practice. However, men at the dedicated clinic expressed dissatisfaction with the availability of treatment. This may be related to the staffing level at the clinic. Men with asymptomatic HIV infection wanted more dentists who specialized in their needs and thought there was not enough information available on oral health.
Adolescent↗
Self-reported gingivitis and bleeding gums among adolescents in Helsinki.
The purpose of this descriptive cross-sectional community based investigation was to analyze the relationship between professionally measured and perceived gingival health in a sample of 1217 adolescents (age 14.0 +/- 0.7 yr). The responses to two questionnaire items relating to self-reporting of "gingivitis" ("inflammation of gums" in Finnish) and "bleeding from gums" are reported along with Community Periodontal Index of Treatment Needs (CPITN), percentage of bleeding sites (BOP%) and modified Papillary Bleeding Index (PBI) scores. It was found that current or past "gingivitis" was less often reported than "bleeding from gums" by this sample and that responses to both items exhibited low levels of agreement with the clinical measures. The results suggest that the self-reporting of gingival health may be useful in monitoring the gingival health of populations but does not have sufficient validity for screening individuals for gingivitis as defined by dental professionals. Furthermore, it is suggested that the term "bleeding from gums" rather than "gingivitis" should be used during clinical or group oral health promotion.
Adolescent↗
Current perspectives on improving chairside dental health education for adults.
This paper reviews current knowledge about improving chairside dental health education for adults. It places this knowledge within a general context of change in clinical ideas about appropriate treatment and of evidence about the current practice of oral health education for adults. The acronym SPERMAID is proposed as a summary of the principles to be followed in the motivation of the adult patient.
Adult↗
Lay perspectives on oral hygiene performance: their use in hypothesis development.
This paper examines issues related to oral hygiene performance. Results from interviews with 113 adults who had received oral hygiene instruction in eight general dental practices are presented with an emphasis on three issues--the respondents' tooth cleaning pattern (the location within other routines of tooth cleaning), the respondents' tooth cleaning structure (the range of items used in tooth cleaning) and the reported content of the oral hygiene instruction given. Respondents reported that the oral hygiene instruction concentrated upon issues of tooth cleaning structure and did not consider issues of tooth cleaning pattern. The two variables (structure and pattern) were cross-tabulated to create an hypothesis to explain individual variation in tooth cleaning performance. The implications of this hypothesis for understanding patient compliance and developing further quantitative investigations are described.
Adolescent↗
Dental treatment and HIV positivity.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Attitude of Health Personnel↗
Access to dental care--experiences of men with HIV infection in the United Kingdom.
A piloted self-complete questionnaire enquiring about dental experiences was administered to a consecutive sample of men with asymptomatic HIV infection attending a dedicated clinic in London. Forty-seven men completed questionnaires. Despite a high level of dental attendance before diagnosis of HIV infection, 60% of the men had not visited a general dental practitioner since diagnosis. Nineteen men had visited a dentist since diagnosis; 15 had been refused or deterred by members of the dental team and 5 had attended without disclosing their HIV status. These data indicate that despite professional guidance to dentists, the perceptions of dentists held by people with HIV and the behaviours of dentists acts as barriers to care. Dedicated dental clinics act as an important safety-net for people with HIV infection.
Adolescent↗
An investigation into the role of post-natal health clinics in oral health education.
This project investigated the oral health information that was given to parents by health visitors at post-natal clinics. This issue was examined by conducting an investigation in one health district in the United Kingdom and, within that, three socially diverse locations. A questionnaire to evaluate parental oral health knowledge and awareness, as well as the personal characteristics of each respondent was developed, tested and administered to 92 respondents. This questionnaire was analysed and compared with previous studies in the same field. Few parents reported receiving oral health information from health visitors. In general, levels of knowledge reported by this sample were better than those reported for the national sample used for the 1983 child dental health survey (Todd and Dodd, 1985). However, fewer of this sample reported receiving oral health education compared to the national sample respondents. A major gap in their knowledge related to fluoride levels in water and fluoride supplements. As found in other studies this sample was also confused about the role of diet in dental caries. Recommendations are made for further improvement in the delivery and reception of oral health education in the post-natal period.
England↗