Inequalities in access to NHS primary care dental services in Scotland during the COVID-19 pandemic

Aminu, A. Q. et al. (2023) Inequalities in access to NHS primary care dental services in Scotland during the COVID-19 pandemic. British Dental Journal, (doi: 10.1038/s41415-023-5856-z) (PMID:37225842) (PMCID:PMC10208681) (Early Online Publication)

Abstract

Introduction: This study aimed to quantify the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on access and inequalities in primary care dental services among children and adults in Scotland. Methods: Access was measured as any NHS Scotland primary care dental contacts derived from administrative data from January 2019 to May 2022, linked to the area-based Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation for children and adults, and related to population denominator estimates from National Record Scotland. Inequalities for pre-pandemic (January 2019-January 2020) and recent (December 2021-February 2022, and March 2022-May 2022) periods for both children and adults were calculated and compared using the slope index of inequality and relative index of inequality. Results: Following the first lockdown (March 2020) there was a dramatic fall to near zero dental contacts, followed by a slow recovery to 64.8% of pre-pandemic levels by May 2022. There was initial widening of relative inequalities in dental contacts in early 2022, which, more recently, had begun to return to pre-pandemic levels. Conclusion: COVID-19 had a major impact on access to NHS primary dental care, and while inequalities in access are apparent as services recover from lockdown, these inequalities are not a new phenomenon.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Early Online Publication
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Sherriff, Professor Andrea and Culshaw, Professor Shauna and McMahon, Dr Alex and Aminu, Dr Abodunrin and Conway, Professor David
• Authors: Aminu, A. Q., McMahon, A. D., Clark, C., Sherriff, A., Buchanan, C., Watling, C., Mahmoud, A., Culshaw, S., Mackay, W., Gorman, M., Braid, R., Edwards, M., and Conway, D. I.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Medicine, Dentistry & Nursing > Dental School
• Journal Name: British Dental Journal
• Publisher: Springer Nature
• ISSN: 0007-0610
• ISSN (Online): 1476-5373
• Published Online: 24 May 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2023 The Authors
• First Published: First published in British Dental Journal 2023
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence