Demography and Treatment Utilization in a High Risk Dental Clinic

Objective: The American Dental Association and American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommend establishing a Dental Home for children by one year of age. The purpose of this study was to use demographic and services provided data provided from the Ricardo Salinas Pediatric Dental Clinic to ascertain the establishment of a Dental Home and to identify any associations that may exist between the varied demographic factors and treatment utilization. Methods: The clinic is considered to be a “high risk” section of San Antonio. A compilation of procedures performed and demographic information was obtained from the computing system. To obtain this data, ADA codes were utilized. The data collected was coded in order to comply with confidentiality guidelines. This study included data from June 2003 through September 2007. Records of 17,459 patients were descriptively analyzed focusing on the demographic makeup of its patients and services provided. Results: The patient population was comprised of 53% females and 47% males. 97% of the patient population was Hispanic. 35% of visiting patients traveled from onsite areas (within the clinic zip code), 28% traveled within the vicinity (surrounding zip codes), and 38% came from suburban areas (minimum distance of 10 miles). Patients that lived closest to the clinic received the most comprehensive dental care, whereas patients living at further distances from the clinic were more likely to receive restorative and emergency care. A higher percentage of children had their initial visit within the 3-6 age groups and had a much greater need for restorative care, than the lower percentage of children that visited the clinic before their second birthday. Conclusion: Improving access to the dental clinic and educating the parents on having their children seen by a dentist at an earlier age appears to have an impact on the degree of invasive dental care that needs to be provided.