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OSRAQMUL: a digital application for oral surgery risk assessment
Haidar Hassan1,2, Hussein Al-Tamimi3, Rawand Shado3
1Academic Plastic Surgery Programmes, Centre for Cutaneous Research, Blizard Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK. h.hassan@qmul.ac.uk.
A new digital tool, the Oral Surgery Risk Assessment (OSRA) application, significantly improved usability and efficiency for oral surgery guidelines compared to traditional PDFs. This digital decision support enhances clinician confidence and patient safety in dental practice.
Area of Science:
- Oral Surgery
- Digital Health
- Clinical Decision Support
Background:
- Adherence to clinical guidelines is crucial for patient safety in oral surgery but is often inconsistent in practice.
- Traditional PDF guidelines are difficult to access at the point of care, hindering efficient clinical decision-making.
- Digital decision-support tools offer potential benefits but require specific evidence for oral surgery applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the usability, efficiency, perceived clinical impact, and user satisfaction of the Oral Surgery Risk Assessment (OSRA) digital application against conventional PDF guidelines.
- To evaluate the effectiveness of a novel digital tool in improving guideline accessibility and clinician confidence in oral surgery.
Main Methods:
- A randomized crossover study involving 30 participants (dental students, junior surgeons, senior clinicians) from an academic center.
- Participants used both the OSRA digital application and PDF guidelines for standardized oral surgery scenarios.
- Outcomes assessed via Likert scale questionnaires on usability, efficiency, satisfaction, and clinical impact, with Wilcoxon signed-rank tests for analysis.
Main Results:
- The OSRA application was rated significantly higher than PDF guidelines across all domains (p < 0.05), with large effect sizes (r = 0.55-0.75).
- Greatest improvements were noted in efficiency and workflow (r = 0.75) and satisfaction and future use (r = 0.73).
- Users reported reduced cognitive load, faster access to information, and increased confidence, with qualitative feedback highlighting clarity and intuitive navigation.
Conclusions:
- The OSRA digital application demonstrated superior performance compared to PDF guidelines in this pilot study.
- Digital point-of-care decision support tools can enhance guideline accessibility, efficiency, and user experience in oral surgery.
- Further development of such tools holds potential for improving the consistency and safety of evidence-based clinical practice in oral surgery.
