Dentist’s Perception on Patients Seeking Informal Advice Related to Their Dental Problems

Abstract

clinical setting. This study is based on the evaluation of the perception of the dentists regarding situations where patients sought
free dental advice.
Methodology: This is a cross-sectional study that was conducted during the time period of three months from May 2019- July
2019. The target populations for this study were the practicing dentists in various dental hospitals, clinics and dental schools in the
city of Lahore. A sample size of 350 was collected using a pre-validated questionnaire and analysis was done using SPSS software
version 23.
Results: According to the obtained results, majority of the dentists (76%) agreed that they give informal dental advice to the
patients and the main venue where they experienced this mode of advice seeking were the social gatherings (49%). There is a
prevalence of hesitation amongst the dentists regarding informal dental advice as they believe it to be an ethical dilemma (36%)
which might lead to further medico-legal implications.
Conclusion: Majority of the dentists are of the opinion that informal dental advice to the patients is an ethical dilemma and
getting involved in such practices without proper consultation and documentation may account for them to commit a medico
legal error.