Cost-analysis of teledentistry in residential aged care facilities
- Authors: Mariño, Rodrigo , Tonmukayakul, Utsana , Manton, David , Stranieri, Andrew , Clarke, Ken
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare Vol. 22, no. 6 (2016), p.326-332
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- Description: Introduction: The purpose of this research was to conduct a cost-analysis, from a public healthcare perspective, comparing the cost and benefits of face-to-face patient examination assessments conducted by a dentist at a residential aged care facility (RACF) situated in rural areas of the Australian state of Victoria, with two teledentistry approaches utilizing virtual oral examination. Methods: The costs associated with implementing and operating the teledentistry approach were identified and measured using 2014 prices in Australian dollars. Costs were measured as direct intervention costs and programme costs. A population of 100 RACF residents was used as a basis to estimate the cost of oral examination and treatment plan development for the traditional face-to-face model vs. two teledentistry models: an asynchronous review and treatment plan preparation; and realtime communication with a remotely located oral health professional. Results: It was estimated that if 100 residents received an asynchronous oral health assessment and treatment plan, the net cost from a healthcare perspective would be AU$32.35 (AU$27.19–AU$38.49) per resident. The total cost of the conventional face-to-face examinations by a dentist would be AU$36.59 ($30.67–AU$42.98) per resident using realistic assumptions. Meanwhile, the total cost of real-time remote oral examination would be AU$41.28 (AU$34.30–AU$48.87) per resident. Discussion: Teledental asynchronous patient assessments were the lowest cost service model. Access to oral health professionals is generally low in RACFs; however, the real-time consultation could potentially achieve better outcomes due to twoway communication between the nurse and a remote oral health professional via health promotion/disease prevention delivered in conjunction with the oral examination
Self-assessed impact of oral health on the psychological well-being and depressive symptoms of older adults living in Melbourne
- Authors: Mariño, Rodrigo , Enticott, Joanne , Browning, Colette , Elsamman, Mahmoud , Etzion, Rachel , Ferooz, Maryam , Fujihara, Ryuun , Hancock, Hugo , He, Julian , Kendig, Hal
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Public Health Dentistry Vol. 80, no. 3 (2020), p. 177-185
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- Description: Objectives: This study aimed to investigate oral health-related factors affecting the self-assessed psychological well-being (PW) and depressive symptoms of independent-living Australians aged 79 years and over living in the community in metropolitan Melbourne. Methods: The Melbourne Longitudinal Studies on Healthy Aging (MELSHA) program was used as the data source in this study and includes data on the health and well-being of older participants. The MELSHA baseline data collection occurred in 1994, the current study used data from the 2008 data collection and included 201 participants, who remained in the study. Data were analyzed using multiple linear regression (MLR) analysis with a stepwise procedure to identify the variables that accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in the participants' PW scores. Results: Present findings indicate that oral health may play a significant mediating role in PW through maintaining a presentable and acceptable physical appearance. Some 16.4 percent of participants reported feeling concerned about their dental appearance, either “Sometimes,” “Often,” or “Very often.” Multivariate analysis showed significantly influences on PW positive and negative affect scores (P ' 0.0001); and depressive symptoms (P ' 0.0001) by participants' dentition status, enjoyment of meals, self-reported feeling of concern about the appearance of the mouth, social activity and self-assessment of general health. Final models explained 17.8, 20.1, and 24.6 percent of the variance of PW positive, negative affect scores, and depressive symptoms, respectively. Conclusions: Oral health, specifically the appearance of the mouth and dentition, plays a significant role in the PW of older Melbournians. Future cross-sectional and longitudinal studies are indicated to raise awareness on the changes required to improve the quality of life of the older population. © 2020 American Association of Public Health Dentistry
- Description: Funding details: National Health and Medical Research Council, NHMRC, 148625, 219295