title: Use of communication techniques by Maryland dentists.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Health care providers' use of recommended communication techniques can increase patients' adherence to prevention and treatment regimens and improve patient health outcomes. The authors conducted a survey of Maryland dentists to determine the number and type of communication techniques they use on a routine basis.
  
  
  METHODS
  The authors mailed a 30-item questionnaire to a random sample of 1,393 general practice dentists and all 169 members of the Maryland chapter of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. The overall response rate was 38.4 percent. Analysis included descriptive statistics, analysis of variance and ordinary least squares regression analysis to examine the association of dentists' characteristics with the number of communication techniques used. They set the significance level at P < .05.
  
  
  RESULTS
  General dentists reported routinely using a mean of 7.9 of the 18 communication techniques and 3.6 of the seven basic techniques, whereas pediatric dentists reported using a mean of 8.4 and 3.8 of those techniques, respectively. General dentists who had taken a communication course outside of dental school were more likely than those who had not to use the 18 techniques (P < .01) but not the seven basic techniques (P < .05). Pediatric dentists who had taken a communication course outside of dental school were more likely than those who had not to use the 18 techniques (P < .05) and the seven basic techniques (P < .01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The number of communication techniques that dentists used routinely varied across the 18 techniques and was low for most techniques. Practical Implications. Professional education is needed both in dental school curricula and continuing education courses to increase use of recommended communication techniques. Specifically, dentists and their team members should consider taking communication skills courses and conducting an overall evaluation of their practices for user friendliness.
authors.affiliation: Ms. Maybury is a faculty research assistant, Herschel S. Horowitz Center for Health Literacy, School of Public Health, University of Maryland, 2367 School of Public Health Building, College Park, Md. 20742, cmaybury@umd.edu.
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Maybury
authors.forename: Alice M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Horowitz
authors.forename: Min Qi
authors.initials: MQ
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Dushanka V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Kleinman
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002327:Cariostatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003142:Communication; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000517:prevention & control; D003742:Dental Devices, Home Care; D003812:Dentist-Patient Relations; D004498:Education, Dental, Continuing; D005260:Female; D005459:Fluorides / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005792:General Practice, Dental; D057220:Health Literacy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008396:Maryland; D009909:Oral Health / Q000193:education; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010377:Pediatric Dentistry; D010895:Pit and Fissure Sealants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D064871:Teach-Back Communication; D013664:Teaching Materials; D014099:Toothbrushing / Q000379:methods; D014100:Toothpastes / Q000627:therapeutic use; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D002327:Cariostatic Agents; D010895:Pit and Fissure Sealants; D014100:Toothpastes; D005459:Fluorides
keywords: Dentists; communication; oral health literacy