The effects of health education on patients' subsequent dental visits: a practice-based research in health promotions.

We conducted a practice-based research project on health education (discharge counselling) in Gallatin, TN involving 280 patients for more than two and one-half years. Half of the patients were randomly assigned to a "discharge counsellor" after receiving treatment from the dentist. A non-dentist office staff provided the discharge counselling. Patient compliance with treatment modalities and after-treatment dental instruction was the key element of this study. This study confirms that health education (discharge counselling) was effective in reducing the number of patients in this project who would revisit the dentists for (1) emergency treatment, (2) the same complaint as their initial complaint, (3) pain management, and (4) prescription refills. In this study, gender difference was not revealed as a factor, but racial difference might be a factor.