IADR Abstract Archives
A Survey on Community Pharmacy Staff and Their Experience Dealing With Acute Child Dental Issues
Objectives: Community pharmacies play a key role in the community, providing healthcare and advice to all patients, often at a more accessible time than other healthcare providers. A 2017 research survey conducted by the Irish Pharmacy Union showed that 98% of people trust the advice and care they receive from their pharmacist. This trust and relationship often make the community pharmacy the first port of call for children’s dental problems. The aim of this survey was to find out how confident community pharmacy staff are with their knowledge for dealing with acute child dental issues.
Methods: An anonymous survey was emailed to all community staff members within Lloyds Pharmacy Group with questions relating to child dental trauma, child dental pain and mouth ulcers in children. The responses received were collated and analysed to better understand community pharmacy colleague’s knowledge and confidence in dealing with paediatric dental issues.
Results: We received responses from a variety wide of roles within the community pharmacy group and spread throughout 4 provinces in Ireland.
45% of respondents reported dealing with a child’s dental issue monthly or more regularly.
64.5% of respondents knew where the local HSE dental clinic to their store was, but only 29% of respondents knew what services were provided by the HSE.
With regards to the 3 main areas surveyed – dental pain, mouth ulcers and dental trauma – 45% and 35% of respondents were extremely confident with dealing with pain and ulcers respectively, but only 3% of respondents felt extremely confident in dealing with dental trauma.
Over 90% of respondents felt additional training in dental issues would be beneficial for their roles.
Over 90% of respondents felt some form of flowchart to be kept in the pharmacy would be beneficial for dealing with dental issues, and they would prefer this to be in paper form rather than digital.
Conclusions: Dental issues regularly appear in a pharmacy prior to seeing a dentist and community pharmacy staff are keen to improve their knowledge of dental issues. This key interaction could be improved if further training was provided and a closer relationship was developed between the dental sector and the community pharmacy sector.
Methods: An anonymous survey was emailed to all community staff members within Lloyds Pharmacy Group with questions relating to child dental trauma, child dental pain and mouth ulcers in children. The responses received were collated and analysed to better understand community pharmacy colleague’s knowledge and confidence in dealing with paediatric dental issues.
Results: We received responses from a variety wide of roles within the community pharmacy group and spread throughout 4 provinces in Ireland.
45% of respondents reported dealing with a child’s dental issue monthly or more regularly.
64.5% of respondents knew where the local HSE dental clinic to their store was, but only 29% of respondents knew what services were provided by the HSE.
With regards to the 3 main areas surveyed – dental pain, mouth ulcers and dental trauma – 45% and 35% of respondents were extremely confident with dealing with pain and ulcers respectively, but only 3% of respondents felt extremely confident in dealing with dental trauma.
Over 90% of respondents felt additional training in dental issues would be beneficial for their roles.
Over 90% of respondents felt some form of flowchart to be kept in the pharmacy would be beneficial for dealing with dental issues, and they would prefer this to be in paper form rather than digital.
Conclusions: Dental issues regularly appear in a pharmacy prior to seeing a dentist and community pharmacy staff are keen to improve their knowledge of dental issues. This key interaction could be improved if further training was provided and a closer relationship was developed between the dental sector and the community pharmacy sector.