The use of dental therapists as examiners in dental epidemiological surveys.

Practitioners in Dental Public Health often need to find more cost-efficient ways of providing services, whilst assisting with the personal and professional development of colleagues. This paper gives an example of how these competencies were deployed in relation to an epidemiology programme.

Comparing a quality of life measure and the Aesthetic Component of the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN) in assessing orthodontic treatment need and concern.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the use of the Aesthetic Component (AC) of IOTN and the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ) in assessing orthodontic treatment need and concern. DESIGN: Cross-sectional observational study. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The subjects were 204 children aged 10-12 years studying in 10 schools in Bristol, UK. They completed a questionnaire comprising the CPQ and questions regarding orthodontic concern. AC scores as rated by the child and by the calibrated examiner were recorded. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: CPQ scores were calculated from the responses in the questionnaire. AC scores and responses to questions regarding orthodontic concern were recorded. RESULTS: The children gave themselves lower AC scores compared to the examiner (p<0.001). The only section of the CPQ that correlated significantly with Examiner AC was the emotional impacts section (rho=0.151). CPQ scores had a slightly higher correlation with self-perceived AC than Examiner AC. However, the correlations were still very low. The emotional impacts section of CPQ (rho=0.332) and overall CPQ score (rho=0.282) were better than the examiner AC (rho=0.209) at reflecting how bothered the children were by the alignment of their teeth, and how upset they would be if they couldn't receive orthodontic treatment (rho=0.464, 0.428 and 0.214, respectively). Children with a normative need for orthodontic treatment, based on examiner AC did not have a worse oral health-related quality of life. CONCLUSION(S): The CPQ and IOTN AC measure different attributes. There should be a shift towards using quality of life measures to supplement the IOTN in assessing the perceived need for orthodontic treatment.

The workforce of professionals complementary to dentistry in the general dental services: a survey of general dental practices in the South West.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the working patterns, training experiences, estimated size, and future training needs of the workforce of professionals complementary to dentistry in the general dental service in an English region. METHODS: Postal questionnaire of NHS dental practices in the South West of England. RESULTS: The response rate was 65%. There was an average of two whole time equivalent (wte) dentists working per practice. Dentists work a mean 0.8 wte per practice. Sixty per cent of practice time is NHS. Vacancies existed for 120 dentists (98 wte) with reported difficulties in recruitment. There was an average of 1.25 wte dental nurses per dentist with 44% of nurses working part-time. A quarter of nurses' time is on non-clinical duties. The turnover rate for nurses was between 13% and 26%, with recruitment difficulties. Approximately 50% of nurses do not have a professional qualification. There is variation between health authorities in proportions of qualified nurses. Hygienists are employed in 72% of practices, but only 20% of their work is NHS. Dentists have favourable attitudes to an expansion in the employment and training of professionals complementary to dentistry. CONCLUSIONS: There are problems with recruitment and retention of all categories of the dental workforce in the GDS, particularly in rural areas. There is a large unmet need for pre- and post-qualification training for professionals complementary to dentistry compounded by marked inequalities in access to training.