Patients’ attendance patterns to different healthcare settings and perceptions of stakeholders regarding screening for chronic, non-communicable diseases in high street dental practices and community pharmacy: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

ObjectiveNon-communicable diseases (NCDs) impose a significant health and economic burden. This study aimed to assess the differential attendance patterns of public to different healthcare professionals and gauge the opinions of key stakeholders towards screening of NCDs by allied healthcare professionals.DesignQuestionnaires were designed piloted and subsequently completed by key stakeholders. The results were analysed descriptively.SettingPublic questionnaires were undertaken in a West Midlands transport station and Public Markets. High street dental and community pharmacy settings were selected via local clinical and research networks. Healthcare professionals were identified using professional networks and were emailed a web link to an online survey.Participants1371 members of the public, 1548 patients and 222 healthcare professionals (doctors general practitioner (GP), dentists general dental practitioner (GDP) and pharmacists) completed the questionnaires.Outcome measuresThe outcome was to compare attendance patterns at GDP and GP practices to determine whether different populations were more likely to access different healthcare professionals, this included determining when patients were last screened for NCDs by their GP. Additionally, the willingness of patients to undergo the required intervention and the opinions of stakeholders regarding the concept of screening for the specified NCDs in general dental and community pharmacy settings were also explored.Results12% of patients who reported seeing a GDP biannually reported that they had not had contact with a GP in the last year. Over 61% of the public reported attending a GDP biannually, of this group 48% reported having never had a check-up at the GP. All stakeholders surveyed were in broad support of the concept of allied health professionals undertaking screening for specific general health conditions.ConclusionsThis study has established that allied healthcare professionals may have access to different cohorts of the population to GPs. If GDPs and pharmacists have access to patients who are not using healthcare services elsewhere, they may be ideally placed to risk assess, and where appropriate offer preventative advice and test for NCDs.

The Role of the Oral Healthcare Team in Identification of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Systematic Review

“…Furthermore, among patients there was strong support for tests which were able to yield immediate results. These findings appeared to transcend specific healthcare systems and cultural barriers, as similar results were reported irrespective of their being conducted in different countries with different models of healthcare provision, including state-funded healthcare systems in Europe [39][40][41], insurance-based and private healthcare within the USA [33] and university-based clinics and private settings in Asia [36].…”

“…Among studies that asked patients whether they felt it was "important" that dentists identify individuals at high risk of T2DM, patient support was strong, in a range of 73%-87% [33,35,36,[39][40][41]. In addition to this acknowledgement, most patients surveyed were willing to undergo chairside screening methods that yielded immediate results and discuss the results of such tests with their dentist [35,36,39,40].…”

Use of dental practices for the identification of adults with undiagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus or non‐diabetic hyperglycaemia: a systematic review

“…A study undertaken in the UK found 12% of people claiming to attend dental appointments at 6‐monthly intervals also stated they had not had contact with their GP in the same 12‐month period [19]. Furthermore, of the sample that identified as regular dental attenders, almost half claimed to have never had an NHS health check at their GP surgery [19]. As ~ 60% of the UK adult population are registered with a dentist [20], this places dental teams in a strong position to identify individuals for risk‐based assessments, as they have access to people who would not necessarily attend their GP regularly when asymptomatic.…”

Patient acceptability of targeted risk-based detection of non-communicable diseases in a dental and pharmacy setting

“…Evidence from the USA suggests that, in 2008, 24% of people did not have contact with a general healthcare provider, yet 23% of those accessed a dentist during that time [5]. This was also reported for a UK population, where 12% of patients who reported seeing a dentist biannually reported they had not had contact with a GP in the same 12-month period [3]. Furthermore, 48% of those who reported being regular dental attenders advised having never had a health check at their GP surgery [3].…”

“…Allied healthcare professionals in the UK access large proportions of the population who frequently do not access general medical practice [GP] services [3]. Given the growing NCD burden, this study aimed to determine patient acceptability and potential barriers to utilising allied healthcare professionals such as dentists and pharmacists in order to assist GPs with the NCD epidemic, through targeted risk-based assessment and early detection.…”