Dentist In Society Flashcards
What are the explanations for power imbalance in a dentist-patient relationship?
- Different roles of the patient and dentist in the appointment -the dentist is always the leader and operator whilst the patient is being worked on and told what to do.
- Setting of the social encounter -unfamiliar and sometimes a threatening environment (clinical smell, white walls, chair at the centre of the room, little decor) that leaves patient feeling uncomfortable and with lack of control over the situation. Once they enter the surgery they feel they can’t leave, unlike the GP they know things will be done to them. Also noisy atmosphere makes it difficult to hear.
- Professional status of dentistry -patients feel inferior due to the cultural and medical authority of dentists that gives them social power.
- Nature of consultation -how dentists communicate with patient eg. do they talk down to them or tell them off.
- Physical factors -patients in pain can’t communicate as well (vulnerable/weak state). Dentist invades personal space of patient unusually only reserved for intimate relationships.
What does the transformative experience refer to?
When patients undergo a change of character upon entering the dental surgery. Patients become shy, less confident, less questioning and more compliant to the recommendations of the dentist. Occurs due to the patients perceived social, cultural and medical authority of the dentist that leads them to feel a power imbalance.
What is are the 4 categories of proxemics?
- Intimate -emotionally close eg.husband, boyfriend/girlfriend
- Personal -close friends
- Social -don’t know well
- Group
What are the implications of power imbalance in patient-dentist relationship?
Patient low and dentist high, they will never meet in the middle. Can’t build a relationship based on mutual respect and trust. Patient becomes passive in the appointment, does not engage with OHI and is a poor attender. Also if patient concerns are not met then they may not consent to treatment they need, medical condition worsens requiring additional appointments using up dentist time and resources.
How can you as a dentist reduce power imbalance with your patients?
- Create a friendly and welcoming dental environment -warm colours, decor, TV on ceiling, equipment out of site, windows etc. Patient feels more comfortable and less foreign.
- Involve patients in the consultation, ask for their thoughts. Discuss why they are finding their oral hygiene regime difficult and find a solution rather than just telling off. Give all info possible so treatment so they are an active participant in treatment decisions.
- Avoid medical jargon that would make patient feel overpowered by medical authority.
- Change communication techniques, language and subjects of conversation suitable for each patient so that bring you and the patient to the same level.
- Patience if patient is in pain and having trouble communicating.
What is meant by the paternalistic communication model?
Patient plays a passive/low input role in the dental consultation. Dentist leas and controls, deflects questions, does not justify diagnosis or treatment and limits information given to patient.
What is the purpose of screening?
- Detect presymptomatic stage of disease
- Identify high risk individuals so risk can be lowered
- Screening of embryos for informed reproductive choices
- Improve public health to lower health expenditure
At what point in the progression of disease is screening carried out?
During ‘cause’ (exposure to risk factors and causative agents) and ‘induction’ of disease with initial pathology but still presymptomatic to the individual
Screening is diagnostic, true or false?
False, gives and indication of risk of disease or disease at presymptomatic stage. Requires further investigations to confirm diagnosis.
What is the difference between selective and mass screening?
Selective is carried out on high risk individuals and can be screening for a single disease or for a number of disease/conditions (multiphasic). Mass is carried out on a large target group of eg. All women age 18-21 for cervical cancer or routine checks of all over 75yrs, mammograms for women over 60yrs.
What it opportunistic screening?
Opportunistic screening happens when someone asks their doctor or health professional for a check or test, or a check or test is offered by a doctor or health professional. Unlike an organised screening programme, opportunistic screening may not be checked or monitored.
What are the key benefits of screening?
- Lower morbidity and mortality in population
- Lower NHS expenditure
- Reduce need for invasive treatment.
- Prevent disease
- Reassure those deemed healthy
What are the requirements of screening?
- Accepted by public
- Diagnosis and treatment available with suitable resources to provide it. Treatment must be acceptable.
- Pathology and natural progression of disease understood
- Evidence that it lowers morbidity/mortality
- Recognisable early symptomatic stage
- Benefits outweigh harm
- Economically viable
- Policy of who and who not to give treatment to.
Which diseases are suitable for screening?
- Those where early therapy gives better outcome than therapy later in disease progression.
- Diseases with slow progression
- Effects of a disease outcome in the individual would be significant eg. Life threatening, affect work, sleep and quality of life.
- High prevalence -mass screening of rare diseases would be ineffective and a waste of time and money.
What are the 4 stages of the screening process?
- Identify high risk individuals or target group (women over 60yrs at risk of breast cancer)
- Carry out screening test (offer mammogram to all over 60yrs)
- Carry out diagnostic tests if screening result was positive (biopsy and blood work up)
- Carry out treatment if disease diagnosed (mastectomy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy)
What does sensitivity of screening test refer to?
Probability that the screening test will give a positive result when disease is truly present ie. Ability of test to identify those with disease.
When is the ideal time to screen?
When health is declining and disease is just setting in. Waste of time to screen everyone who is healthy and normal (before health decline) and at an advanced stage of disease there is no longer a purpose to screening (couldn’t prevent disease or need for invasive treatment at this stage).
What are the benefits of screening for caries?
- Can also pick up other intraoral problems and/or diseases eg. PD, plaque retentive restoration, damaged teeth/restorations, occlusal problems etc.
- Identify high risk caries individuals
What is the evidence for the effectiveness of screening children in schools for caries?
Ineffective at reducing caries levels and so no longer carried out.
Which target group are still screened for caries?
Specialist needs children at high risk. Detection of caries or risk of caries helps reduce prevalence of caries occurring or becoming severe (with need for extraction) so preventing requirement for GA sedation which would be traumatic for these children.
What are the risk markers for caries that could be used in screening?
Behaviour and sociodemographics
Why is selection of appropriate method for caries screening pragmatic?
- Plaque levels ineffective -don’t know how long ago patient brushed teeth, score could be low just because it’s been since the morning they last brushed.
- No physical characteristics to identify individuals as high risk
According to the socioenvironmental approach what factors affect overall oral health?
Behaviour (lifestyle), physiology (immunity, BP) and psychosocial components (feelings, motivation) which are affected by risk factors associated with social class and environment (poverty, stress, working environment).
Are environment and lifestyle (behaviours) independent?
No behaviour is not always a choice and can be dependant on an individual’s environment eg. Night workers increased risk of caries as eating when they have low salivary flow, athletes are mouth breathers and have high sugar isotonic drinks.
What does the black report 1982 state and what is the relevance to dentistry?
Higher death rates in low social classes, children have lower birth rates and shorter stature. Major diseases affect social classes 4+5 more than classes 1+2. Dentists should be aware that health inequalities are related to socioeconomic class. Patients of classes 4+5 are more at risk of poor oral health and caries.
What percentage of children worldwide have caries?
60-90%
How many cases of oral cancer are there worldwide per 100,000 people?
1-10 cases
What percentage of the NHS expenditure is spent on oral health?
5-10%
What is the WHO definition of oral health promotion?
Process of enabling people to increase control over and to improve their health.
-Provides them with the skills, knowledge and motivation to change to positive health behaviour.
What are the 5As of smoking cessation?
Ask, advise, assess, assist, arrange
What are the principles of health promotion?
Involves entire population
Involves public participation
Action targets determinants of health
What are the 5 components of health promotion?
- Prevention -lower disease levels directly
- Behaviour change
- Education
- Empowerment
- Social change (collective focus)
What is important to consider when developing an oral health promotion campaign?
Economic worth (cost vs effectiveness of intervention)
What does a quality adjusted life year (QALY) refer to?
Measure of disease burden:
Estimates years of life remaining after treatment and scores quality of life for each of those years
What is QUALY used for?
Measures cost effectiveness of health promotion by accessing disease burden.
Name some settings for health promotion?
Schools, workplace, dentists, community, population level (mass media campaigns)
What is the Ottawa Charter?
A series of actions agreed internationally to achieve the goal of ‘health for all’. It is what health promotion campaigns are founded upon.
What are the Five action areas for health promotion identified in the Ottawa charter?
- Build health policy
- Create supportive environment
- Community action
- Develop personal skills
- Reorientation of health services
In accordance to the Ottawa charter how can health professionals create a supportive environment?
Improve population living/working conditions so they are safe, stimulating, enjoyable and satisfying. Encouraging an environment where individuals help each other out. This will improve individual’s general well being as part of the holistic approach to health.
In accordance to the Ottawa charter how can health professionals build health policy?
Encourage the government to make new policies in a number of different sectors (education, housing, fiscal, health, food business etc.) that will ultimately address health issues. Aim is to make positive health behaviour the cheaper and easier option. Eg. Tax on high sugar drinks, implementing diet and oral health in to school curriculum.
How can we strengthen community action in oral health promotion as dentists?
Encourage local cookery clubs which teach young mums how to cook easy and low cost family meals that are nutritious and low in sugar, promote farmers markets so members are the community can by healthy fresh foods and low costs whilst supporting local businesses . Getting community to work together and provide opportunity for social interaction that will make members happier and more likely to pursue health.
How can dentists works to develop personal skills of populations in health promotion?
One to one OHI at the dentist, school visits teaching children and parents how to brush teeth, explaining the importance of oral health at dentist appointments and community events. Supports personal development by giving patients the skills and knowledge that enable them to take control over and carry out positive health behaviour (empowerment)
In the Ottawa charter what does reorientation of health services refer to?
Modify approach of dental care (and healthcare in general) to one of prevention and promotion as opposed to curative services/treatment.
What is health?
State of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing.
Health is a resource not a need, what is meant by this?
Health required for personal, social and economic development as well as quality of life therefore it is seen as a resource not an objective in life.
What is meant by advocacy?
Process of making political, economic, cultural, social, behavioural, environmental and biological factors favourable through advocacy of health. This will help to provide a solid foundation in the prerequisites of health
What is meant by mediation?
The prerequisites and prospects for health cannot be ensured by the health sector alone. Good health promotion involves mediating between different group eg. Government, community, health services, local authorities, media etc. in the pursuit of health.
What is meant by enabling?
Allowing individuals to achieve their full health potential by providing equal resources and opportunities so they can take control of their health determinants. Such as development of life skills, supportive environments and access to information.
What are the problems with health promotion?
- Healthism -tendency to remove ourselves from areas with severe health needs.
- Inverse care log
- Political controversies
- Time between preventive strategy and noticeable improvements in health.
- Time taken to build trust in the community and to change health policies
- Financial burden
- Health Inaccessibility factors eg. Language, transport etc.
What is the main cause of referrals to paediatric specialist?
Behaviour management of paediatric patients not the nature/complexity of their condition.
How can we as dentists engage children?
Come down to their level.
- Pretend games to stimulate their creative minds eg. Chair is a rocket
- Give them a challenge eg. asking them to carry out a task is seen as a game not a demand.
- False choice questions -involves a situation in which only limited alternatives are considered, when in fact there is at least one additional option eg. Do you want to get I the chair this side or left side.
- Make notes about their favourite teddy, t shirt, shoes so you can free back to them at a later stage and develop rapport.
What are the 4 stages of child development?
- Physical
- Motor
- Cognitive
- Social
What is object permanence?
When child realises that objects still exist even if they cannot be seen, heard, tasted or smelt. Occurs between 0-2yrs.
What is egocentrism and at what age does it occur?
Child unable to to take another’s point of view. Occurs between 2-7 yrs. can be difficult to manage in dental consultation
What is the concrete operational stage?
Marks the start of logical thinking, child is able to understand that objects retain certain characteristics like mass and volume even when they change shape or are divided.