Chief Dental Officer (Defence), Defence Primary Healthcare (Dental), DMS Whittington, Lichfield, Staffordshire, WS14 9PY, UK.
Br Dent J. 2022 Feb;232(4):232-238. doi: 10.1038/s41415-022-3985-4. Epub 2022 Feb 25.
Introduction All dental service delivery organisations and their workforce need to adopt more efficient and effective delivery models including increased skill-mix.Aim The aim of this study was to investigate the possible barriers/benefits to the utilisation of dental therapists (DTs) in the UK Military Dental Service.Method An explanatory mixed-methods study of sequential design was conducted using purposive sampling of dentists and DTs in the Defence Military Service. Electronic questionnaires (25) were sent to dentists and DTs with an overall response rate of 80% (15/18 dentists and 6/7 DTs). Following analysis of the questionnaires, seven semi-structured interviews (four dentists, three DTs) were thematically analysed.Results All dentists and DTs agreed that DTs could play a positive role within the Defence Military Service, but the barriers and benefits of their use centred on the six main themes of: leadership, delegation, new ways of working, scope of practice, skill-mix and utilisation.Conclusions To address the barriers and maximise the benefits of using DTs, effective leadership at the organisational, dental centre and individual levels is required. This leadership is key to unlocking the benefits of improved teamwork, increased skill-mix and maximised use of all dental care professionals within the Defence Military Service.
简介 所有的牙科服务提供机构及其工作人员都需要采用更高效、更有效的服务模式，包括增加技能组合。目的 本研究旨在调查在英国军队牙科服务中使用牙科治疗师（DTs）的可能障碍/益处。方法 采用有目的抽样的方法，对国防军队中的牙医和 DTs 进行了一项解释性混合方法的顺序设计研究。向牙医和 DTs 发送了 25 份电子问卷，总体回复率为 80%（15/18 名牙医和 6/7 名 DTs）。在对问卷进行分析后，对 7 名牙医和 3 名 DTs 进行了半结构化访谈，并进行了主题分析。结果 所有的牙医和 DTs 都认为 DTs 可以在国防军队中发挥积极作用，但他们使用 DTs 的障碍和益处主要集中在六个主题上：领导力、委托、新的工作方式、执业范围、技能组合和利用。结论 为了克服障碍并最大限度地发挥 DTs 的益处，需要在组织、牙科中心和个人层面上进行有效的领导力。这种领导力是在国防军队中释放提高团队合作、增加技能组合和最大限度地利用所有牙科保健专业人员的益处的关键。
