Manpower and the future role of dentistry in developing countries

The latest information from the WHO Global Data Bank confirms that oral disease prevalence figures are deteriorating for most of the developing countries. Although, oral diseases are preventable, inadequate application of preventive measures and inappropriate establishment of oral health care delivery systems including the employment of unsuitable oral health personnel categories, may have led to the ineffective control of these problems. There is now a need to consider the types of oral health services actually needed in developing countries and the future role dentistry will need to adopt to ensure that manpower resources adequately meet the requirements of the population. An analysis of the extent and severity of oral diseases and the demands of populations in these countries reveals that the majority of the services required are fundamentally restorative, rehabilitative and preventive. These services could be carried out by various types of dental auxiliaries and non-dental personnel. This approach complies with the strategy of the universal three-level model which will operate by a referral system based on full community involvement at the primary health care level. In this way the ratio of members of the oral health team to population may be calculated on the basis of the most relevant information. Under the supervision of the Oral Health Unit, WHO and the Intercountry Centre for Oral Health, Thailand, health service research is being undertaken to test the possible application of the primary health care approach to the design of an effective oral health delivery system for developing countries.