Berthelsen Hanne, Owen Mikaela, Westerlund Hugo
Centre for Work Life and Evaluation Studies (CTA) & Faculty of Odontology, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden.
Centre for Workplace Excellence, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.
Acta Odontol Scand. 2023 Apr;81(3):196-201. doi: 10.1080/00016357.2022.2111345. Epub 2022 Aug 18.
Dental caries is a health problem that can be prevented. The aim of this study is to analyse if the quality of leadership, in Swedish Public Dental Health clinics, influences the extent to which patients with caries receive preventive care, and if any such effect is mediated through a collaborative work climate, clear role expectations and a low average level of burnout among staff.
The multilevel cross-sectional design includes work environment data from surveys of 75 general public dental clinics, register-based data on preventive measures provided to 5398 patients who received a dental filling due to a caries diagnosis, and patient demographics. Using a multilevel path analysis with logistic regression, we tested a model with one direct and three indirect pathways, controlling for the potential confounding effect of patient demographic factors.
Leadership quality, as assessed by the staff at the clinic, was associated with increased odds of patients with caries receiving prevention, controlling for patient demographic factors. Leadership quality was also positively related to a collaborative work climate, clear role expectations and a low average level of burnout among staff. Against expectations, however, no indirect effect from leadership quality on prevention through the other work environment factors was found.
In conclusion, the quality of leadership in Swedish Public Dental Health clinics was positively related to a good work environment for staff and to delivery of preventive care to patients experiencing caries.
龋齿是一个可预防的健康问题。本研究的目的是分析瑞典公共牙科保健诊所的领导质量是否会影响龋齿患者接受预防护理的程度，以及这种影响是否通过合作的工作氛围、明确的角色期望和员工中较低的平均倦怠水平来介导。
多层次横断面设计包括来自75家普通公共牙科诊所调查的工作环境数据、基于登记的向5398名因龋齿诊断而接受补牙治疗的患者提供的预防措施数据以及患者人口统计学数据。我们使用带有逻辑回归的多层次路径分析，测试了一个具有一条直接路径和三条间接路径的模型，同时控制患者人口统计学因素的潜在混杂效应。
诊所工作人员评估的领导质量与龋齿患者接受预防护理的几率增加相关，同时控制了患者人口统计学因素。领导质量还与合作的工作氛围、明确的角色期望以及员工中较低的平均倦怠水平呈正相关。然而，与预期相反，未发现领导质量通过其他工作环境因素对预防产生间接影响。
总之，瑞典公共牙科保健诊所的领导质量与员工良好的工作环境以及为龋齿患者提供预防护理呈正相关。
