The Preferences of Dentists’ Attire among a Selected Population of Parents

Abstract

Aim: To evaluate the preferences of the dentists' attire among parents. Study Design: Descriptive cross-sectional study. Methodology: A questionnaire was used to obtain socio-demographic information and their preferences from Parents that accompanied their children to the Paediatric dental clinic. Information was also elicited from photographs showing male and female dentists’ with different attires and protective wears. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 22 and the level of significance was set at <0.05. Results: One hundred and fifty parents, comprising of 105(70%) females and 45(30%) males were assessed. The 40-49 year age-group were the majority [73(48.7%)], the female dentist was the preferred gender and there were statistically significant differences between the male and female subjects (p=0.047).  One hundred and forty-six (97.3%) wanted the dentists to wear name tags mostly for ease of identification 103(68.8%) and communication 20(13.3%). All parents wanted the dentist to don protective coat and gloves, while 123(82%) and 80(53.3%) parents preferred dentists' wearing facemasks and protective glasses, respectively. One hundred and twenty-eight (85.3%) preferred the white coats because it depicts purity/cleanliness (51.4%) and professionalism (45.7%). Dentists attire was important to 82% and there were statistical significant differences (p=0.01) between those with previous dental exposure and first-timers. There were statistically significant differences (p=0.03) between procedures [orthodontics and other procedures] done in the present visit and their perception of dentist attire. Conclusion: The preferences of the parents on protective wears, use of name tags and gender of the dentist show that identification, safety, empathy and rapport were desired from the dentist by the parents. Previous exposure of their children to the dental setting had an influence on the parents’ preferences.