Preventive and clinical care provided to adolescents attending public oral health services New South Wales, Australia: a retrospective study

BACKGROUND: Dental Therapists and Oral Health Therapists (Therapists) working in the New South Wales (NSW) Public Oral Health Service are charged with providing clinical dental treatment including preventive care for all children under 18 years of age. Adolescents in particular are at risk of dental caries and periodontal disease which may be controlled through health education and clinical preventive interventions. However, there is a dearth of evidence about the type or the proportion of clinical time allocated to preventive care. The aim of this study is to record the proportion and type of preventive care and clinical treatment activities provided by Therapists to adolescents accessing the NSW Public Oral Health Service. METHODS: Clinical dental activity data for adolescents was obtained from the NSW Health electronic Information System for Oral Health (ISOH) for the year 2011. Clinical activities of Therapists were examined in relation to the provision of different types of preventive care for adolescents by interrogating state-wide public oral health data stored on ISOH. RESULTS: Therapists were responsible for 79.7 percent of the preventive care and 83.0 percent of the restorative treatment offered to adolescents accessing Public Oral Health Services over the one year period. Preventive care provided by Therapists for adolescents varied across Local Health Districts ranging from 32.0 percent to 55.8 percent of their clinical activity. CONCLUSIONS: Therapists provided the majority of clinical care to adolescents accessing NSW Public Oral Health Services. The proportion of time spent undertaking prevention varied widely between Local Health Districts. The reasons for this variation require further investigation.