A Consensus-Based Set of Measures for Oral Health Care

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Dental Public Health
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Growing demand for responsive and accountable healthcare systems necessitates transparency and demonstrated competence.
• Current oral health care systems require improved methods for routine data reporting to enhance patient-centered and prevention-oriented approaches.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish a comprehensive list of measurable oral health topics for transparent and explicit routine data reporting.
• To develop a consensus-based list of topics relevant to diverse stakeholders in oral health care.

Main Methods:

• A 4-stage approach was employed: literature scoping and appraisal, expert meetings, a two-stage online Delphi process, and World Café discussions.
• Structured conversations involved a wide range of stakeholders including general dental practitioners, patients, insurers, and policymakers from six European countries.
• The ADVOCATE project facilitated consensus on topics crucial for describing oral health and oral health care.

Main Results:

• A list of 48 topics was generated, organized into six clusters: access to care, symptoms and diagnosis, health behaviors, oral treatments, oral prevention, and patient perception.
• All identified topics are measurable, supported by defined data sources with clear numerators and denominators.
• This represents the first comprehensive, multi-stakeholder-endorsed topic list for guiding routine oral health data measurement.

Conclusions:

• The established topic list provides a foundation for implementing transparent and explicit measurement of routine oral health data.
• Effective measurement is crucial for identifying variations in practice and outcomes, driving improvements in oral health care systems.
• This initiative supports the shift towards more patient-centered and prevention-oriented oral health care globally.