Methods: Face-to face interviews of 750 randomly selected adults on the basis of their residential postcode, across three PCTs, using a questionnaire instrument which included OHIP-14 and a shorter clinical oral health index (OHX).
Results: The overall response rate from valid addresses was 62%. Preliminary analysis reveals that just over two thirds of residents reported visiting an NHS dentist. Additionally, two thirds of residents reported attending dental services within the past 24 months. Respondents identified a range of measures to improve dental services including, increasing the number of dentists, improving flexibility of surgery opening hours and receiving clearer information on costs and treatment. Almost half of the population expressed at least one impact on the OHIP scale. Frequently expressed impacts were those of pain and discomfort on eating. Psychological impacts were expressed in terms of tension, feelings of self consciousness, difficulty relaxing and embarrassment. There was a significant association between psychological impacts and residents aged 35-59 (Kruskal-Wallis one-way analysis of variance). Logistic regression of OHIP-14 and OHX showed a trend for young people to have experienced less impact on their daily quality of life than their older counterparts. Only one in six respondents were experiencing one or more impacts on the OHX scale; the majority of whom expressed dissatisfaction with the appearance of their teeth.
Conclusion: Population surveys provide additional information to inform the commissioning of primary care dental services to meet the needs of local residents.
Acknowledgements: This work was funded by Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham PCTs