Quality of life among dentists in teaching hospitals in South Canara, India.

ABSTRACT

Objectives: This paper reports on the quality of life among dentists using World Health Organization Abbreviated Instrument for Quality of Life Assessment, comprising 26 items which measure the following broad domains Physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment. Materials and Methods: The instrument was self-administered among dentists in four teaching dental institutions. A total of 191 questionnaires were given out. Of those, 187 were consented and answered, making up a response rate of 97.9%. The internal consistency of the questionnaire, measured by Cronbach's alpha was estimated at 0.75. Results: Highest mean score was seen for Domain 3 (Social relationships) (16.15 + 2.38) and the least score was for Domain 4 (Environment) (14.72 + 2.12). Higher proportions of respondents rated their quality of life as good (65.1 percent), and also majority of dentists (63.5 percent) were satisfied with their health. Conclusion: Quality of life recognizes the value of an individual's health in the broader psychologic and social aspects of his/her life. In this study, the overall rating of quality of life among dentists in teaching hospitals is good.