Patient Management
Sylvia Louis, DMD
Pediatric Dental Resident
St. Barnabas Hospital
St. Barnabas Hospital
New York, New York, United States
Christopher Lane, DDS
St. Barnabas Hospital
Josephine Mensah, DMD
St. Barnabas Hospital
Bronx, New York, United States
Paul Chu, DDS
Program Director
St. Barnabas Hospital
Bronx, New York, United States
Purpose: The purpose of this prospective study is to analyze no-show rates in the pediatric dental population and the effect of teledentistry on need for in-person appointments.
Methods: Three-hundred-fourteen patients between the ages of 0-17 years who were patients of St. Barnabas Hospital and/or Union Community Health Centers in the Bronx were recruited. The study analyzed patients who visited the operating room (OR), emergency department (ED) or dental clinics as emergency walk-ins (EMG) and had follow-up appointments scheduled to address their primary concern. Those who did not attend their appointment were contacted to find out (1) the reason the appointment was missed, (2) the need for an in-person appointment following a limited exam via a video teledentistry visit and (3) the no-show rate at the second follow-up appointment if given.
Results: Forty-one out of 314 patients across all 3 groups missed their appointments. OR patients were more likely to miss their appointment when compared to EMG patients (OR: 23%; EMG: 10%; P=.005) but not when compared to ED patients (ED: 10%; P=.184). The most common reason for missed appointments is work/school conflict followed by illness. Further, teledentistry eliminated the need for in-person follow-up appointments in OR versus EMG (OR: 78%; EMG: 5%; P < .001) and OR versus ED patients (ED: 0%; P=.023). Absence at second follow-up appointments was not statistically significant when comparing groups.
Conclusions: Teledentistry eliminated the need for in-person OR follow-up appointments in most cases, thus offering a practical alternative for providers and patients.