Treatment Need as an Indicator for Planning Dental Postgraduate Programs at Umm Al-Qura University, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: The treatment need is one of the fundamental factors for effective planning of postgraduate dental programs that improve the competency of dental practitioners. Aims: To assess the treatment need of patients at Umm Al-Qura University, Dental Teaching Hospital utilizing statistically representative sample of patients visiting the clinics. To use data analyzed to propose the need and design for postgraduate degrees in the college. Material and methods: Information were retrieved from the electronic database of 4,967 patients’ files anonymously including age, gender, treatment needs and referred clinic specialty. The obtained data were subjected to descriptive statistics in the form of mean ± SD, frequencies, cross tabulations, and percentages using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Results: The percentage of females' records was significantly higher (52%) than that of males. The mean age of males was higher than females (36.66 versus 35.10) while young adult age category constituted the greatest number (36.6%). The most common treatment need recorded in patients' files were periodontics (73.3%), restorative (60.4%) followed by fixed prosthodontics (54.8%). Nearly half of the patients’ (48.9%) were in need of endodontic treatment. The common significantly higher needs in females were restorative and periodontics, while among males, significantly higher treatment needs for surgery, endodontics and prosthodontics were recorded. Conclusion: Patient treatment needs at Faculty of Dentistry, Umm Al-Qura University reflect a high priority for proposing postgraduate degrees in periodontics and restorative dentistry. Also, devoting considerable time and effort in counseling and providing undergraduates with information that guide in making career decisions and match the treatment needs in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Clinical Significance: Establishment of dental postgraduate degrees that meet the treatment needs of the community will lead to more professional diagnosis and management of patients by qualified specialists.