Keywords
preventive dental care - treatment barrier - dentist - Indonesia
Introduction
Early childhood caries (ECC) is one of the most prevalent diseases affecting children
under six years old.[1]
[2] In this population, during their golden period of growth and development, oral health
problems can cause pain, speech difficulties, eating difficulties, decreased quality
of life, and the need for orthodontic treatment in the future.[1] Indonesia has one of the highest prevalences of ECC, where 90.2% of 5-year-old children
suffer from it.[2] To reduce the prevalence of caries, the promotion of preventive programs in the
community and clinical settings is required.
Appropriate use of dental services is critical for both caries prevention and management.
However, many studies have indicated inadequate dental care usage among various demographics.[3]
[4]
[5]
[6] This may be influenced by not only patients' and caregivers' attitudes and behaviors
but also oral healthcare providers'.[3]
[7]
Evidence shows that dentists sometimes do not follow evidence-based advice.[8] As healthcare providers, dentists cannot provide treatments without their patients'
agreement and willingness to pay.[9] Patients' lack of knowledge and awareness will result in negative feelings and unacceptability
of the treatment.[5]
[7]
[10] Most patients only seek treatment when they experience acute dental pain, so restorative
treatment is emphasized more at that time.[3]
[11] Children's lack of coping skills and parents' acceptance make caring for them more
difficult.[3]
[5] Dental caries is more likely in children whose caregivers lack knowledge and do
not accept preventive treatment.[12]
Dentists' lack of knowledge may result in a negative attitude toward dentists. Some
claimed that they did not believe preventive measures were effective or important.[13]
[14] The shift over preventive-oriented treatment just recently made older dentists less
likely to receive proper information throughout their dental school.[15] Also, dentists' high workload and lack of time sometimes make it impossible to provide
preventive treatment.[15]
[16]
[17]
The healthcare system should facilitate preventive dental care the most.[7] However, dentists thought they were not properly compensated for prevention.[7]
[13] Financial pressures and a lack of reimbursement make dentists not provide the treatment,
nor do patients ask for it.[9]
[18] The accessibility of healthcare facilities and materials also influences the ease
of treatment delivery.[10]
[18]
[19]
In children, dental anxiety is often triggered by a negative dental experience and
a fear of dentists.[20] Preventive treatments, such as regular examinations, oral prophylaxis, and topical
fluoride applications, can reduce children's fear of the dentist, improving their
view of dental care and encouraging them to use it as they age.[12]
Understanding children's healthcare providers' views is crucial.[5]
[8] Understanding what deters dentists from practicing prevention in this population
can significantly contribute to the success of dental caries prevention programs and
reduce caries prevalence throughout the life course.[7]
[10]
[18]
[21]
[22] This study investigates barriers to provide preventive dental care for preschool
children, as perceived by Indonesian general dentists in clinical settings.
Materials and Methods
This cross-sectional study was conducted in November 2022 after being reviewed and
approved by the Faculty of Dentistry, Universitas Indonesia's ethics committee (protocol
No. 031101022).
Sample Size and Eligibility Criteria
Using G*Power v.3.1.1 (www.gpower.hhu.de), a sample size of 105 dentists was determined to have a significance of 0.05 and
a power of 95%.[23] An effect size of 0.25 was obtained from the association between dentists' attitudes
and preventive practices in a prior study.[24] Given the possibility of selection bias, we try to collect data from participants
throughout the country and make sure every sociodemographic criteria was represented.[25] To broaden the population and improve generalizability, the minimum sample size
in this study was set at 350 dentists.
A nonprobability, snowball sampling, method was used to recruit general dentists nationwide
with at least 1 year of work experience. Social media of each of the 34 provinces'
Indonesian Dentists Association were used to recruit key persons who distributed the
online questionnaire to general dentists in their working area through the organizations'
WhatsApp group. This study excluded specialists and those who are currently not practicing.
Data Collection
A self-administered online questionnaire was prepared by adapting previous studies
regarding barriers to providing care for children and preventive treatment.[3]
[18]
[21] This study only included relevant items with the study objectives that underwent
a cross-cultural adaptation process.[26] The questionnaire was validated through pilot testing on 42 general dentists at
the 2-week interval and psychometric properties were assessed. All items in the questionnaire
were valid (Pearson's product moment = r count > r table) and reliable (Alpha = 0.886; Corrected Item Total Correlation (CITC) > 0.3;
Interclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) = 0.888).
Participants who agreed to participate in this study completed the questionnaire using
Google Forms. Before proceeding to the main part of the questionnaire, participants
were explained the study's objectives and given their informed consent. Participants
answered a five-point Likert scale ranging from “0” (strongly disagree) to “4” (strongly
agree) in the questionnaire, which consisted of the child (5 items), dentist (5 items),
parents (5 items), and healthcare system-related (5 items) dentists' perceived barrier.
Sociodemographic (gender, age) and practice characteristics (practice sector, practice
experience, weekly practice hour, weekly patients number, weekly pediatric patients
number, weekly pediatric preventive care patients number, and percentage of insured
patient) were also recorded. The number of patients collected was used to calculate
percentage of pediatric patients and percentage of pediatric preventive care.
Data Analysis
Data analysis was performed using SPSS 23 software (IBM Corp., Armonk, New York, United
States). The means and standard deviation for numerical variables and the prevalence
for categorical variables were examined using descriptive statistics. Mann–Whitney
U test was used to compare perceived barriers by gender, Kruskal–Wallis by practice
sector, and Spearman correlation analysis was used to assess the correlation between
perceived barriers with age, years of practice experience, weekly practice hours,
percentage of pediatric patients, percentage of pediatric preventive care, and percentage
of insured patients.
Due to the lack of normality and different characteristics of variables, Partial Least
Squares – Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was conducted with smart PLS version
3.2.9 to determine the association between multiple variables to perceived barriers
and the percentage of pediatric patients who receive preventive care simultaneously.[27]
[28] The coefficient of determination (R2) calculates the proportion of the variance in the dependent variable predicted by
the independent variable. The path analysis (β) determined the causal linkage between
each dentist's characteristic to the perceived barrier (direct effect) and percentage
of pediatric preventive care (indirect effect) using bootstrapping (p-value <0.05). The model's fitness was assessed with a Standardized Root Mean Square
Residual (SRMR) value.[27]
[28]
Results
This study analyzed data from 362 general dentists from 34 provinces in Indonesia.
Most respondents (80.4%) were female, with an average age of 32.8 years and 6.7 years
of work experience. Dentists in this study worked in a variety of settings: 126 (34.8%)
worked in community health centers, 43 (11.9%) in government hospitals, 41 (11.3%)
in private hospitals, 258 (71.2%) in private practices, and 107 (29.7%) in national
health insurance covered clinics. Most of these dentists worked in more than one practice,
with the highest proportion working solely in the private sector (38.4%). We collected
self-reported data from the dentists regarding their working hours and the number
of patients treated. They worked 27.5 hours per week and saw an average of 27 patients.
However, on average, only five to six pediatric patients with two preventive treatments
were seen each week. When compared to the total number of patients treated, 23.3%
were pediatric patients, and 41% received preventive care. About 28.2% of the respondents
worked in healthcare settings that provided national or private and insurance facilities,
with a mean of 34.6% of treated patients utilizing these facilities.
[Table 1] shows the proportions and means of the scores of barriers perceived by dentists
related to multiple factors including child patients, parents, dentists, and the healthcare
system. On the same scale (0-20), the highest mean scores of barriers for dentists
were related to the healthcare system (10.93 ± 5.07), parents (10.83 ± 5.12), child
patients (10.43 ± 5.37), and from the dentists themselves (5.55 ± 4.05). Respondents'
answers on a Likert scale were recategorized into whether the respondent considered
the item to be a barrier. Agree and strongly agree answers are considered as a barrier
for the dentist.[5]
Table 1
Agreement with statements describing barriers to preventive treatment in preschool
children by general dentists (n = 362)
|
Item
|
Mean (SD)
|
Not barrier
|
Barrier
|
|
Child-related barrier (0–20)
|
10.40 (5.37)
|
|
|
|
1. Pediatric patients get upset easily
|
2.28 (1.32)
|
147 (41%)
|
215 (59%)
|
|
2. Pediatric patients cannot cope very well with dental treatment
|
1.88 (1.31)
|
217 60%)
|
145 (40%)
|
|
3. Pediatric patients do not like sitting in the dental chair
|
1.55 (1.33)
|
260 (72%)
|
102 (28%)
|
|
4. Most pediatric patients are fearful of dental treatment
|
2.30 (1.34)
|
141 (39%)
|
221 (61%)
|
|
5. The patient's poor oral health made preventive care irrelevant
|
2.39 (1.42)
|
140 (39%)
|
222 (61%)
|
|
Dentist-related barrier (0–20)
|
5.55 (4.05)
|
|
|
|
1. Preventive dental care is not my priority
|
0.38 (0.89)
|
193 (53%)
|
169 (47%)
|
|
2. Preventive dentistry has low priority in the dental curriculum
|
0.85 (1.24)
|
305 (84%)
|
57 (16%)
|
|
3. There are no dental auxiliaries available to provide preventive care because I
didn't ask for it
|
1.36 (1.45)
|
251 (70%)
|
111 (30%)
|
|
4. Preventive dental treatment is not profitable for dentist
|
1.87 (1.46)
|
346 (96%)
|
16 (4%)
|
|
5. I find pediatric dental treatment is stressful
|
1.08 (1.30)
|
294 (81%)
|
68 (19%)
|
|
Parents-related barrier (0–20)
|
10.83 (5.12)
|
|
|
|
1. Parents have poor knowledge of pediatric caries prevention
|
2.80 (1.13)
|
72 (20%)
|
290 (80%)
|
|
2. Parents do not want the dentist to give their children preventive care
|
1.11 (1.31)
|
298 (82%)
|
64 (18%)
|
|
3. Parents do not see the need for primary teeth dental treatment
|
2.01 (1.37)
|
192 (53%)
|
170 (47%)
|
|
4. Parents are unwilling to pay for preventive care
|
2.22 (1.35)
|
179 (49%)
|
183 (51%)
|
|
a. Parents ignore regular dental visits without complaints
|
2.69 (1.26)
|
110 (30%)
|
252 (70%)
|
|
Healthcare system-related barrier (0–20)
|
10.93 (5.07)
|
|
|
|
1. Dental insurance covers no preventive measures
|
2.30 (1.31)
|
172 (48%)
|
190 (52%)
|
|
2. Materials needed for preventive dentistry are not easily available
|
1.99 (1.54)
|
186 (51%)
|
176 (49%)
|
|
3. Payment for providing preventive care to children is inadequate
|
1.64 (1.39)
|
255 (70%)
|
107 (30%)
|
|
4. Dental care for young children emphasizes curative treatment rather than prevention
|
2.69 (1.24)
|
105 (30%)
|
257 (70%)
|
|
5. I think Indonesian dental care provides good service for young children
|
2.31 (1.33)
|
173 (48%)
|
189 (52%)
|
Abbreviation: SD, standard deviation.
Scale anchors: 0. strongly disagree; 4. strongly agree; agree and strongly agree (3
and 4) considered barrier.
More than half of the respondents considered three items in the child-related domain
as a barrier. Dentists believe that pediatric patients are easily upset and fearful
of dental treatments. Most of them come to dental health facilities with too severe
oral conditions to receive preventive care. More than 50% of respondents considered
two parent-related items to be barriers. According to dentists, the main barriers
were parents with insufficient knowledge and parents who ignored dental visits when
there were no complaints. In the dentist domain, all items were considered barriers
by only less than 50% of dentists, indicating that the majority did not perceive the
barriers as coming from themselves. Most of the barriers identified are in the domain
of the healthcare system. More than 50% agreed that the main barriers in this domain
were poor pediatric oral health services in Indonesia, insurance not covering preventive
care, and a focus on curative care.
[Tables 2] and [3] present an analysis of dentists' characteristic associated with their perceived
barriers to determine the relationship and differences. The greater the value of these
barriers, the more barriers dentists experience. [Table 2] shows significant differences in the barriers experienced by dentists working in
the government, private, and both sectors. Dentists working in the public sector face
greater challenges.
Table 2
Comparative analysis between dentist characteristics and their perceived barrier (n = 362)
|
Dentist characteristic (n)
|
Child-related
|
Dentist-related
|
Parents-related
|
Healthcare system-related
|
|
1.
|
X ± SD
|
p-value
|
X ± SD
|
p-value
|
X ± SD
|
p-Value
|
X ± SD
|
p-Value
|
|
Gendera
|
|
0.164
|
|
0.813
|
|
0.066
|
|
0.986
|
|
Male (72)
|
13.3(6.3)
|
|
7.4 (5.5)
|
|
11.6(6.3)
|
|
13.4(6.3)
|
|
|
Female (290)
|
12.3(6.4)
|
|
7 (4.7)
|
|
13 (6)
|
|
13.4(4.9)
|
|
|
Practice sector[b]
|
|
0.002**
|
|
0.009**
|
|
0.000**
|
|
0.000**
|
|
Private (139)
|
11 (6.7)
|
|
6.2 (4.6)
|
|
11.6(6.2)
|
|
11.9(4.7)
|
|
|
Public (88)
|
13.7 (6)
|
|
7.6(5.27)
|
|
14.8(5.6)
|
|
15.3(5)
|
|
|
Both (135)
|
12.5(6.4)
|
|
7.8(4.8)
|
|
12.7(5.9)
|
|
13.8(5.4)
|
|
Abbreviation: SD, standard deviation.
* aMann–Whitney U test.
b Kruskal–Wallis test.
*Significant at 0.05.
**Significant at 0.01.
Table 3
Correlation analysis between dentist characteristics and their perceived barrier (n = 362)
|
Dentist characteristic (n)
|
Child-related
|
Dentist-related
|
Parents-related
|
Healthcare system-related
|
|
1.
|
r-Value[a]
|
p-Value
|
r-Value[a]
|
p-Value
|
r-Value[a]
|
p-Value
|
r-Value[a]
|
p-value
|
|
Age (32.8 ± 8.2 years old)
|
–0.181**
|
0.001
|
–0.093
|
0.079
|
0.153**
|
0.004
|
–0.095
|
0.071
|
|
Practice experience (6.7 ± 6.5 years)
|
–0.163**
|
0.002
|
–0.045
|
0.396
|
–0.133
|
0.012
|
–0.058
|
0.275
|
|
Weekly practice hour (27.5 ± 16 hours)
|
0.172**
|
0.001
|
0.073
|
0.164
|
0.073
|
0.163
|
0.094
|
0.075
|
|
% pediatric patient (23.3 ± 16.7%)
|
–0.119*
|
0.023
|
–0.080
|
0.129
|
0.024
|
0.649
|
–0.058
|
0.270
|
|
% pediatric patients given preventive care (41 ± 37.2%)
|
–0.165**
|
0.002
|
–0.256**
|
<0.001
|
–0.245
|
<0.001
|
–0.178**
|
0.001
|
|
% insured patient (34.6 ± 36.3%)
|
0.129*
|
0.014
|
0.050
|
0.341
|
0.086
|
0.100
|
0.161**
|
0.002
|
a Spearman correlation.
*Significant at 0.05.
**Significant at 0.01.
[Table 3] demonstrated the relationship between age, years of practice experience, weekly
practice hours, percentage of pediatric patients, percentage of pediatric preventive
care, and percentage of insured patients with the barriers faced by dentists in each
domain. Practice hours in 1 week had a significant positive correlation with barriers
related to the children. The higher percentage of pediatric patients showed lower
dentists' perceived barriers from the children and themselves, but greater perceived
barriers regarding the parents. The lower the dentists' perceived barriers in providing
pediatric preventive treatment, the higher the percentage of pediatric patients treated
preventively by these dentists. Dentists treating more insured patients face greater
challenges in preventive measures.
[Fig. 1] shows the multivariate analysis to assess the association between multiple dentist
characteristics to their perceived barriers and the percentage of pediatric patients
given preventive care. When comparing different indicators of dentist characteristics,
dentists' age (18.1%) and practice sector (16.3%) significantly contributed to fewer
perceived barriers they experienced. Also, dentists' perceived barriers were associated
with less percentage of pediatric patients who received preventive care significantly
by 20%. All dentists' characteristics can predict perceived barriers by 12.3%, but
only 4% for the percentage of pediatric preventive care provided. The relationships
are shown in [Table 4]. The SRMR for the imputed model was 0.051, which is under an acceptable benchmark
of less than 0.08, indicating this model has a good fit.[27]
Table 4
Direct and indirect effects of variables of dentists' perceived barrier and % pediatric
preventive care among Indonesian dentists (n = 362)
|
Variable
|
Direct effect (perceived barrier)
|
Indirect effect (%pediatric preventive care)
|
|
Path coefficient (β)[a]
|
t-statistics[b]
|
Path coefficient (β)[a]
|
t-statistics[b]
|
|
Age
|
–0.41
|
3.77*
|
0.08
|
2.90*
|
|
Practice hour
|
0.09
|
1.85
|
–0.02
|
1.57
|
|
Practice sector
|
0.17
|
3.30*
|
–0.04
|
2.54*
|
|
Years of practice
|
0.18
|
1.71
|
–0.04
|
1.57
|
|
% insured patient
|
0.07
|
1.28
|
–0.01
|
1.20
|
|
Perceived barrier (direct effect)
|
–
|
|
–0.20
|
4.65**
|
|
R2
[c]
|
0.123
|
0.04
|
|
SRMR[d]
|
0.051
|
Abbreviation: SRMR, Standardized Root Mean Square Residual.
a The path coefficient shows the magnitude of the direct and indirect effects of exogenous
variables on endogenous variables.
b The t-value measures whether exogenous variables have a significant effect on endogenous
variables (significant at t > 1.68 and p < 0.05).
c The coefficient of determination (R2) shows how much of the total variance of the construct is explained by the model.
e The model fit test assesses how good the model under study is (model fit if SRMR
<0.08). *significant at 0.05; **significant at 0.01.
Fig. 1 A path model showing the association between dentist characteristics with perceived
barrier and percentage of pediatric patients given preventive care. Outer model = factor
loading value of exogenous variables; Inner model = path coefficient value (β) of
endogenous variables. *significant at 0.05; **significant at 0.01.
Discussion
Dentists play a critical role in promoting positive attitudes toward oral healthcare.
Health promotion and prevention are more effective than treatments alone in the long
run.[10] But, in terms of providing this treatment to pediatric patients, dentists have a
more challenging role.[3]
[12]
[24] Lee (2014) demonstrated that dentists believe children are irritable and that treating
pediatric patients is stressful. Some also claimed that the pay for treating pediatric
patients was insufficient.[3]
[9] Also, preventive care has many barriers from the dentist's perspective, such as
a lack of knowledge, improper remuneration, and inadequate healthcare facilities.[7]
[18]
[22] This study combines these two points to investigate the barriers dentists perceive
when providing preventive care to pediatric patients.
According to the findings of this study, the healthcare system was the most difficult
barrier for dentists to overcome when providing preventive care. Many dentists believe
that the current healthcare system prioritizes cure over prevention. Furthermore,
most insurance policies not covering preventive dental care make it more difficult
for dentists to provide these services. This could be due to patients' low willingness
to pay, especially if they did not experience acute pain.[6]
[9] Thus, it is less desirable to receive preventive care without insurance. The majority
of dentists, however, different from what was shown in other studies, believe that
the payment received for preventive care is adequate.[3]
[11]
[18] Preventive agents that are often unavailable also make providing the treatment impossible.[29]
Parents are responsible for their children and undoubtedly play a significant role
in determining whether they will be treated.[5] In this study, dentists felt parents lacked knowledge about caries prevention measures
and tended to skip routine dental visits.[30] Some dentists also believed that parents thought dental care was unnecessary, so
dental care utilization may still be low.[4]
Children's lack of coping abilities makes the treatment even harder.[3] Most of the time, primary preventive practices were no longer relevant because the
oral conditions of pediatric patients who visited the dentist were too severe.[1]
[11] Dentists also believed that most pediatric patients feared dental treatment, making
it difficult for them to provide care.[3]
[4] Lastly, there are barriers from the dentists themselves where some of them still
think preventive dental care is less important than other treatments.[3]
[21] Most dentists deny that preventive dentistry is not prioritized in their dental
curriculum, preventive dental care is not profitable, and pediatric dental care is
stressful for dentists. However, the findings of this study contradict several previous
studies that found general dentists frequently found treating children stressful.[5] Recent shifting of academic curriculum toward a greater focus on prevention may
have caused these more positive perceptions due to more younger participants in this
study.[31]
This study also examined how dentist background affects barriers perceived by them.
Female dentists may be more motivated to deliver preventive treatment and feel fewer
perceived barriers. This could be since female health workers are found to be more
interested in patient-centered treatment and methods.[15] Despite the unequal number of female and male dentists in this study, Indonesia
has more female dentists and previous studies also showed gender disparities with
similar proportions.[32]
The practice sector also influences the barriers they face every day.[33] Dentists working in the government sector face more challenges, which may be related
to a lack of resources, differences in clinical orientation, and the expectations
of patients seeking oral care.[34] The public or primary care sector demonstrates that healthcare workers typically
receive a fixed salary from the government. In contrast, private sector employees
are paid on a fee-for-service basis.[35] Private healthcare is generally concerned with increasing profits, whereas the public
sector is less so.[33] However, greater expenses, over-incentivization of procedures and testing, a higher
risk of consequences, and looser regulation can impair private sector efficiency.
The public sector is less patient-friendly and often lacks preventive care resources.[3] Healthcare spatial analysis showed that almost half of Indonesian dentists work
in the private sector only, which aligns with this study's representativeness.[36]
In this study, younger dentists faced more children and parents-related barriers.
However, the more recent curriculum emphasizes preventive care, communication skills,
and community dentistry. Therefore, new graduates should more interested in preventive
approaches.[15] Inexperience may have contributed to this study's discrepancies. Also, dentists
who worked greater hours felt more difficulties. Dentists know that longer working
hours may be associated with stress and burnout, resulting in less-than-optimal treatment.[37]
Fee-for-service is still the most common payment mechanism in developing countries
like Indonesia. Thus, few can afford regular dental care, mainly only for curative
purposes. Dental health treatments are underutilized because preventive measures are
considered unimportant.[38] Although there are many types of private insurance in this country, Indonesian national
health insurance, which is available to everyone, only provides limited coverage of
preventive education and consultation.[30] Patients may decline to undergo preventative care if they must spend more money
on it.[6] No matter how much dentists wish to give preventive treatment, it is impossible
if their patients and parents refuse to receive it and do not use healthcare facilities
effectively.
Based on the current study's findings, we suggest allocating more time and resources
to promote preventive behaviors. Five Ottawa Charter principles should be prioritized—building
supportive environments, constructing solid public policy, bolstering community action,
empowering one's abilities, and reorienting health services.[39] In Indonesia, oral health is already considered a component of overall health in
national policy. Several preventive programs, such as affordable fluoridated toothpaste,
oral health education, and parental counseling, are already available.[4] Other preventive measures, such as topical fluoride, sealants, and silver diamine
fluoride, are well-known and employed in various settings. Nonetheless, these approaches
have not been made available nationwide due to limited resources. As the emphasis
shifts from curative to preventive care, national insurance should cover more preventive
measures, such as regular fluoride and sealant applications in community or clinical
settings.
Cross-sectional studies have various limitations that should be considered when interpreting
the results. It is impossible to say whether the variables being studied cause the
outcome or whether the outcome causes the variables. Due to respondents' responses
at a certain time, working hours and patient numbers may be inaccurate. Thus, recall
or social desirability bias can occur.[25] Multivariate analysis may have low determinant coefficients since this study did
not investigate many other variables that affect the number of patients who received
treatment. Also, the non-probability sampling may result in only dentists who are
knowledgeable about preventive care agreeing to participate, leading to less accurate
conclusions that cannot be generalized to the entire population.
Conclusion
This study identified multiple barriers, with the healthcare system and parents related
factors posing the greatest perceived barriers. These parties must be targeted in
health programs. As service providers, dentists must be trained to address these barriers
(through formal or continuing education) to maximize caries prevention practices in
Indonesia. Despite the economic and geographic barriers to reducing the prevalence
of ECC, more research on effective strategies and actions to address this problem
should be conducted. Advocating for the importance of young children's oral health
is critical because it has a long-term impact on their growth and development.
