Attitudes and preferences of parents about being present in the dental operatory

To determine if there was an association between the type of dental procedure being performed on children and parental desire to be present in the operatory.

Parents (N=339) whose children had dental appointments at a university pediatric dental clinic or affiliated practices in Southern Nevada completed a survey. Parents identified attitudes/preferences associated with five commonly conducted pediatric dental procedural scenarios. Data were analyzed using chi-square tests (P=.05).

Most respondents (N=339) were female (N=248) and/or Hispanic (N=204), had a household income of less than $50,000 annually (N=251), and a high school education. The primary reason (78 percent) parents wanted to be present during their child's dental treatment was comfort. Most parents wanted to observe exams/X-rays (70 percent), sedation procedures (69 percent), fillings and crowns (66 percent), extractions (64 percent), and physical restraint (61 percent). Only 38 percent of parents would be content with the dentist unilaterally deciding about their presence in the operatory.

Parents in this study expressed a preference to remain with their child during any dental treatment. Practitioners are encouraged to consider their presence customary and establish office policies and protocols that beneficially involve parents in the pediatric patient's care.