Prevention of oral diseases in the practice of primary care teams

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Aim: To analyze the use of oral disease prevention technologies by primary care physicians and nurses. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional medical and sociological study was conducted in primary health care facilities in Ivano-Frankivsk region (western Ukraine) based on the original author's program. The study included 153 randomly selected physicians and 113 nurses who agreed to participate in the study by signing informed consent. The survey included questions about the use of evidence-based recommendations for the prevention of oral diseases by primary care providers in their medical practice and personal life. RESULTS: Results: Primary care teams do not properly conduct screenings on oral cancer (40.8-41.2% of physicians and 61.1-64.6% of nurses), as well as do not advise patients on the frequency and necessity of dentist check-ups for children and adults (34. 0-36.6% and 38.1-42.5%, respectively). They do not consult patients on teeth (50.3-53.1% and 51.3-60.2%) and gums (52.3% and 54.0%) hygiene care and most of them do not have information about these issues in their healthcare facilities or on their social media pages. Half of the physicians and more than half of the nurses themselves either do not visit dentists for checkups at all (9.2% and 11.5%, respectively) or do so irregularly (39.2% and 44.2%). Every fourth doctor (26.8%) and nurse (25.7%) brush their teeth less than twice a day, most do not use flossers (65.4% of doctors and 79.6% of nurses) and interdental brushes (91.5% and 95.6%). CONCLUSION: Conclusions: Primary care providers do not pay sufficient attention to oral diseases prevention among patients and themselves. Given the severity of the burden of oral diseases, a model for integrating basic dental prevention measures into primary health care should be developed and implemented at the state and regional levels.