General dental practitioner opinions on Selection criteria for dental radiography: a qualitative focus group study

Introduction In the UK, general dental practitioners are exposed to multiple sets of clinical guidelines, including those relating to selection of x-ray examinations. A focus group was convened to explore issues around current guidelines and how a future edition might be improved.Method A purposive sample of seven general dental practitioners in the North West of England took part in a focus group. A sound recording was transcribed and analysed by thematic content analysis.Results Nine themes arose from the discussion: awareness of the Selection criteria for dental radiography(SCDR); utility of the latest edition; presentation of a new edition; the format of a new edition; evidence base; practice standards and evidence levels; the General Dental Council and Care Quality Commission; radiation doses; and dissemination.Discussion Awareness of theSCDRwas high, although participants were not aware of its full contents. The document was regarded as practitioner unfriendly and participants preferred accessible flowcharts available online and through mobile devices. Participants assume that appraisal of evidence has been done appropriately and accounted for in producing recommendations. Participants used clinical guidelines to protect themselves from the threat of legal action and investigation by the regulator.Conclusion The authors make ten recommendations for the future production of guidelines.