Gaps in oral health-care service provision systems for children in Nigeria: A case study of a tertiary health institution

• Main Authors: Fatusi, O. (Author), Folayan, M. (Author), Ogunbodede, E. (Author), Sowole, C. (Author)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2018
• Subjects: adolescent; Adolescent; child; Child; Child, Preschool; Delivery of Health Care; Dental Care for Children; Dental caries; Dental Health Services; dental procedure; female; Female; gingivitis; health; health care delivery; health service; Health Services Needs and Demand; human; Humans; infant; Infant; male; Male; mouth disease; Nigeria; Oral Health; patient referral; preschool child; primary health care; Referral and Consultation; referral patterns; statistics and numerical data; Stomatognathic Diseases; tertiary care center; Tertiary Care Centers; tertiary health care; Tertiary Healthcare; time factor; Time Factors
• Online Access: View Fulltext in Publisher

 Background: The study investigated the common dental conditions of children seen in a Nigerian tertiary hospital. The referral patterns were also determined to know how many of the patients had sought care at the lower levels of health before visiting a tertiary hospital. Methods: All the children aged 0-15 years seen at the Dental hospital, Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex, Ile-Ife, Nigeria over a 4-year period were included in the study. Information retrieved from their case notes including patterns of referral, presenting complaints, diagnosis, and treatment were extracted from the case records of the patients. Treatment plans for patients seen at this tertiary hospital were categorized into primary, secondary, and tertiary health-care services. Results: A total of 1,866 children sought treatment over a 4-year period at this tertiary hospital of which 1715 (91.9%) sought treatment without referral from lower levels of care. Only 102 (5.4%) children were referred from primary health care (PHC) centers. Six hundred and seventy-five (36.2%) children presented with pain while 502 (26.9%) attended for a 'check-up.' Furthermore, 779 (41.8%) children were diagnosed with periodontal disease (including gingivitis) and 539 (28.9%) with dental caries. Scaling and polishing with oral hygiene instruction was the most common treatment recommended. Only 5% of children seen at this tertiary health facility required specialized oral health-care services provided by tertiary health institutions. Conclusions: The range of oral health care needed and service provided by and for patients who visited this tertiary health-care institution can be effectively provided in a primary or secondary oral health-care delivery center. The poor integration of oral health care into PHC services in Osun State burdens the tertiary health-care institutions to provide nonspecialized oral health-care services. © 2018 Medknow Publications. All rights reserved.