Retrospective study of emergency room dental patients retained in a hospital dental practice

To maintain viability, hospital dental services must evaluate patient pools to help improve referrals and retention. Because the emergency room has traditionally been a source of new patients for the dental department, a retrospective study was done to determine any factors that might relate to the retention of emergency room dental patients. A total of 198 dental patient records were surveyed. Results indicated that certain similarities exist in those patients retained in the hospital dental practice.