Use of the "Hall Technique" for management of carious primary molars among Scottish General Dental Practitioners

Dean, A.A., Bark, J.E., Macpherson, L.M.D. , Sherriff, A. and Cairns, A. (2010) Use of the "Hall Technique" for management of carious primary molars among Scottish General Dental Practitioners. European Archive of Paediatric Dentistry, 12(3), pp. 159-162.

Abstract

AIM: To assess the current awareness, usage and opinion of the Hall technique as a restorative option for primary molars in Scottish general dental practice; and to identify preferences for methods of further training, if desired, for those not currently using the technique. STUDY DESIGN: A postal questionnaire was sent to a random sample of Scottish general dental practitioners (GDPs) (n= 1207). Half of all GDPs within each health board were contacted. All analyses were carried out in Minitab (version 15). The study was primarily descriptive and used frequency distributions and cross-tabulations. Percentages are reported with p5% confidence intervals. Characteristics of the whole sample were reported. However when recording the use of the Hall technique, only those GDP’s reporting to treat children, at least sometimes, are considered. RESULTS: Following two mail-shots, the overall response rate was 59% (715/1207). Eighty-six percent (616/715) of respondents were aware of the Hall technique as a method of restoring primary molars and 48 % (n=318) were currently using the Hall technique. Of those GDPs who never used the Hall technique (51% of total respondents; n=340), 46% (n=157) indicated they were either ‘very interested’ or ‘interested’ in adopting the Hall technique into their clinical practice. The preferred source for further training was via a section 63 continuing professional development (CPD) course, incorporating a practical element. CONCLUSIONS: Of those GDPs in Scotland who responded to the questionnaire, an unexpectedly high number were already using the Hall technique in their practice, and among those not currently using it, there is a demand for training.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Cairns, Dr Alison and Sherriff, Professor Andrea and Macpherson, Professor Lorna
• Authors: Dean, A.A., Bark, J.E., Macpherson, L.M.D., Sherriff, A., and Cairns, A.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Medicine, Dentistry & Nursing > Dental School
• Journal Name: European Archive of Paediatric Dentistry
• ISSN: 1818-6300
• Published Online: 01 January 2010