Access to Oral Medicine: Perceptions of Washington State dental providers on using telehealth to deliver oral medicine specialty treatment to their patients

Abstract

Background: Telehealth has provided increased specialty access to patients and healthcare providers; however, it is not currently being utilized to deliver oral medicine. In this study, we aim to assess the telehealth related perspectives of licensed oral health providers in the State of Washington and their likelihood to utilize telehealth for oral medicine services. Methods: A cross-sectional, confidential, online survey study was performed with data collected via REDCap©. Emails were distributed to 8,427 licensed dentists and dental hygienists provided by the Washington State Department of Health public records. Analyses included descriptive statistics, means and standard deviations, as well as a hierarchical multiple regression (HMR) modeled by the COM-B system of the Theoretical Domains Framework. Results: Among the 927 participants who initiated the survey (11% response rate), 563 (57%) were included in the analysis based on level of completeness. Dental providers indicated a significant lack of adequate access to oral medicine services (M = 2.16, SD =1.70 on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 indicating Strong Agreement), and a significant likelihood to use telehealth to deliver oral medicine (adjusted: M = 71.30, SD =25.38 on a 100-mm VAS scale with 100 being Very Likely). Within the Capabilities, Opportunity and Motivation domains, Motivation was the domain most strongly associated with higher likelihood to use telehealth to deliver oral medicine. Conclusion: We identified oral health providers’ lack of access to oral medicine in Washington State, and are willing to use a telehealth program to deliver oral medicine. Benefits and barriers indicated by providers in this survey may inform the development of a telehealth program where a multidisciplinary team can support other dental providers in the integrated delivery of oral medicine to their patients across WA State.