Journal of Education and Health Promotion

Challenges for dental professionals during COVID‑19 pandemic: Are we prepared?

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

. Mukesh Kumar
. Truppti P. Sonone 1
. Alok Kumar Shukla 2
. Kumar Tathagat Singh 3
. Jay Kishore 4
. M. Harsha 5

1 Department of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopaedics, Yerala Dental College, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

2 Department of Prosthodontics, Crown and Bridge and Implantology, Dental College Azamgarh, Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

3 Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Dr. BR Ambedkar Institute of Dental Sciences and Hospital, Patna, India

4 Department of Oral Pathology and Microbiology Primary Health Centre, Vaishali, Bihar, India

5 Department of Oral Pathology and Microbiology, Lenoro Institute of Dental Sciences, Rajanagaram, Andra Pradesh, India

Abstract
BACKGROUND: With the emerging knowledge and understanding of novel coronavirus infection,
dentists must be capable of resuming their practice with necessary precautions in near future; hence,
the aim of the present study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude, and practices along with felt
challenges by the dentists concerning practicing dentistry during pandemic in India.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: An online cross‑sectional questionnaire study was conducted on
the dental practitioners of Uttarakhand, India. The dentists were approached by obtaining their
E‑mail address from the heads of dental institutions or dental association branches in the state. The
knowledge, attitude, and practices along with apparent challenges of practicing during pandemic
were assessed using closed‑ended questionnaire. The relationship between the mean scores and
demographic variables was determined using Student’s unpaired t‑test by keeping the significance
level below 0.05.
RESULTS: Out of 759 respondents, a total of 458 respondents were male (60%), whereas 301 (40%)
were female. The mean knowledge scores were higher in females (11.06 ± 2.12) compared to
males (9.72 ± 4.53), which was statistically significant (P < 0.05). The mean practice score was lower
in males (17.49 ± 6.47) compared to females (19.26 ± 6.69) and likewise lower scores were seen in
graduates compared to specialists and these differences were again statistically significant (P < 0.05).
Majority of the study participants felt that following various safety guidelines were not feasible (96.97%)
and too expensive (96.44%) and considered them as a challenge.
CONCLUSION: It is imperative that dentists should be fully prepared before resuming their services
and reach the right kind of awareness to limit the spread of the disease.

Keywords

COVID‑19
dental practice
pandemic
readiness
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Journal of Education and Health Promotion
Volume 11, Issue 4
May 2021
Pages 1-5

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