The practice of conscious sedation by Senior Dental Surgeons in the Health Board Dental Service in the Republic of Ireland.
OBJECTIVE
To establish the nature and extent of the practice of conscious sedation by Senior Dental Surgeons in the Health Board Dental Service (HBDS) in the Republic of Ireland and to determine the barriers to the use of conscious sedation.


METHODS
Postal questionnaire survey.


METHODS
The Health Board Dental Service in the Republic of Ireland in 2002.


METHODS
Questionnaires were sent to fifty-five Senior Dental Surgeons working in the HBDS.


RESULTS
Fifty questionnaires (90.9%) were returned. Less than a quarter of Senior Dental Surgeons reported current sedation use in their area. Oral sedation was the most commonly used method with few using relative analgesia and less using intravenous sedation. Forty percent of Senior Dental Surgeons surveyed reported receiving training in conscious sedation as an undergraduate. Nearly 60% of those surveyed reported using conscious sedation in a previous employment. All respondents said the main barrier to the use of conscious sedation in the HBDS was the lack of training opportunities on the subject in Ireland.


CONCLUSIONS
Conscious sedation techniques other than oral, are used to a very limited extent in the HBDS in Ireland. There is great interest amongst Senior Dental Surgeons in the increased use of conscious sedation techniques. A lack of training opportunities is the main barrier to the expansion of their use.
Quinn
Declan
D
North Eastern Health Board, Navan, Co Meath, Ireland.
Lyne
John
J
Nunn
June
J
O'Farrell
Mary
M
D000328:Adult; D000766:Anesthesia, Dental / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000768:Anesthesia, General / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000776:Anesthesiology / Q000193:education; D002648:Child; D016292:Procedural Sedation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019140:Dental Care for Children / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017742:Dental Care for Chronically Ill / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003730:Dental Care for Persons with Disabilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003752:Dental Health Services; D003815:Dentists / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004497:Education, Dental; D004498:Education, Dental, Continuing; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D007494:Ireland; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires