Service-mix in general dental practice in Australia

An understanding of the current service-mix in private general practice in Australia and the factors that may influence its distribution is important in the anticipation of the future practice of dentistry. The present study aimed to describe service-mix, to investigate the association of service-mix with characteristics of presenting patients, and to identify and discuss a number of factors which may be influencing change in service-mix. Service-mix was dominated by restorative, diagnostic and preventive services and a limited number of services accounted for most service provision or dentist time. Both the broad areas of service and more frequently provided services were related to age of presenting patients. Service-mix appears to be changing over time. Changing needs and expectations of patients and philosophies and technologies available to dentists are among factors that push or pull service-mix in new directions. However, changing service-mix and practitioner variation require considerably more exploration.