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Dentists' use of validated child dental anxiety measures in clinical practice: a mixed methods study
Hussain Alshammasi1, Heather Buchanan2, Paul Ashley3
1Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Background:
Assessing anxiety is an important part of the assessment of a child presenting for dental treatment; however, the use of dental anxiety scales in practice is not well-documented.
Aims:
To introduce child dental anxiety scales, and to monitor the extent to which dentists used them; to explore the experience and views of dentists regarding anxiety assessment.
Design:
A mixed-methods design was employed.
Method:
A protocol for child anxiety assessment was introduced to paediatric dentists in Eastman Dental Hospital. After 6 months, 100 patient files were audited to examine compliance with the protocol. Fourteen dentists were interviewed to explore their experience and views regarding anxiety assessment.
Results:
Only five patients were assessed using the scales. Thematic analysis of the dentist interviews revealed three themes: 'Clinical observations and experience: The gold standard'; 'Scales as an estimate or adjunct'; and 'Shortcomings and barriers to using scales'.
Conclusions:
The dentists in our study did not use anxiety scales, instead they rely on their own experience/judgement. Therefore, scales should be recommended as an adjunct to judgement. Brief scales are recommended as clinicians lack time and expertise in administering anxiety questionnaires. Advantages of using scales and hands-on experience could be incorporated more in undergraduate training.
