Keynote Address: Much to Offer: Making Best Use of Economics in Oral Health Research

Abstract Body: The economics of oral health and health care involves the application of the principles of economics to the promotion, protection and restoration of oral health in populations. It includes, but is not limited to, the planning, management and delivery services aimed at of oral health care. In this presentation I illustrate how the economics of oral health and health care goes well beyond ‘costing’ oral health interventions and calculating ‘cost effectiveness ratios’. It encompass the determinants of oral health, the nature of demand for oral health care, market failure in (oral) health care and its implications for efficiency and equity, drawing on my research activities over 35 years and involving collaborations between economists and other dental health researchers. Key messages are identified from this research relating to fundamental problems in the way policy makers and planners address the challenges of improving oral health in populations.