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Field Testing of Remote Teledentistry Technology

Authors:
Rodrigo Mariño
Parul Marwaha
Richard Collmann
Matthew Hopcraft
David Manton
Michael McCullough
Andrew Stranieri
Ken Clarke
Elizabeth Ozanne
Irene Blackberry

Keywords: oral health, teledentistry, intraoral camera, nursing homes

Abstract:
In the Australian state of Victoria, only 11% of nursing home residents have seen a dentist in the past 12 months. This study tested whether the use of intraoral cameras by oral health professionals located at remote facilities improved access to appropriate oral health care services for nursing home residents. The support program and instructional kit for camera operators, including the structure, content and delivery of the program, was developed and evaluated. Residents’ views about the structure, content and delivery of the program were also evaluated. The intraoral camera was operated by trained teledentistry assistants with the aim of screening residents for oral diseases and pathological conditions. Treatment plans were then developed by remote oral health professionals based on the information collected. The remote assessments were compared with those done via traditional face-to-face oral examinations. Results indicate that the proposed teledentistry approach for oral health screening is feasible and reliable as an alternative to traditional oral health examination. Residents expressed high levels of satisfaction with the teledentistry service. This study provides an innovative solution towards closing the gap in the provision of sustainable oral health care services to underserviced populations (e.g., nursing homes, rural areas).

Pages: 23 to 28

Copyright: Copyright (c) IARIA, 2014

Publication date: March 23, 2014

Published in: conference

ISSN: 2308-4359

ISBN: 978-1-61208-327-8

Location: Barcelona, Spain

Dates: from March 23, 2014 to March 27, 2014