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Preventive

207 - Essential Basket of Dental Services: Survey of Canadian Pediatric Dentists

Monday, May 26, 2025
Abstract:

Purpose:  The Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) aims to address the oral health needs of children from low- and middle-income families. Pediatric dentists, with expertise in children’s oral health, play a critical role in identifying essential services for the program. This study focused on determining the essential oral health services pediatric dentists believe eligible children should have access to and compare these services with the CDCP grids.




Methods:  A cross-sectional survey, administered electronically by the Canadian Association of Pediatric Dentists (CAPD) to eligible members, including certified pediatric dentists working in Canada or retired from practicing, comprising 297 potential respondents.




Results:  The survey achieved a 35% response rate (105 participants; 84 completed). Most respondents were women, with the largest representation in the 30–39 age group (33%). Respondents emphasized the equal importance of deciduous and permanent teeth, advocating comprehensive oral health services. Their perceptions largely aligned with the CDCP grids but identified gaps, including the absence of services such as mouth guards, preformed zirconia crowns, space maintainers, smoking cessation counseling, oral hygiene instruction, and nutritional counseling. These were deemed essential, with recommendations for application of limits or pre-authorizations to appropriate candidates.




Conclusions:  While the CDCP aligns with many priorities of pediatric dentists, the exclusion of specific services limits its comprehensiveness and preventative approach. Including these services could reduce the societal and healthcare burden of oral diseases. Engaging pediatric dentists in consultations is essential to ensuring the program addresses the normative oral health needs of Canadian children.


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Research supported by the Canadian Pediatric Society and the Ontario Society for Preventative Dentistry.