Impact of Reduced Operating Room Access on Dental Departments in Children's Hospitals

Purpose: Access to hospital operating rooms (HORs) for pediatric dental patients worsened with the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of hospital operating room denials for dental patients on service and teaching missions in selected US children's hospitals (CHs). Methods: A 12-question online survey was sent to administrative heads of 34 CH dental departments. Results: Twenty-two surveys were completed. All respondent CHs were engaged in pediatric dentistry training. The majority (68 percent) reported that access to HORs worsened since 2017, resulting in longer wait times for hospital dental service cases (82 percent), decreased ability to achieve and maintain oral health for special needs patients (64 percent), more caries-related emergency department visits (50 percent), and delays in medical surgery for children needing dental clearance (45 percent). A quarter (27 percent) reported HOR availability somewhat affected resident training. Conclusion: Lack of access to hospital operating rooms in training hospitals had a negative impact on the quality and timeliness of care and the quality of training.