Distribution of private dental practices and dentists 2011 and 2018: Analysis by regional area

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine whether there has been a change in access to private dental services in regional and remote areas of Australia by comparing the distribution of private dental practices and dentists in 2011 to the distribution in 2018 according to state and territory and the Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia Plus. Design and setting: A database of dental practices and dentists in Australia was compiled from open-access sources for 2011 and 2018; dental practices were mapped by state, Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia Plus and Statistical Area 2 census district and linked to population data. Main outcome measures: Change in number of private dental practices, mean number of dentists per private practice, population per dental practice and mean number of dentists per population by geographic location from 2011 to 2018. Results: There were more dental practices in rural and remote areas in 2018 than in 2011. The percentage of Statistical Area 2s without a private dental practice was lower in 2018 but remained high in rural areas and increased with remoteness-inner regional 23.1%; outer regional 31.6%; and remote and very remote 48%. Growth in registered dentist numbers did not match population growth, and on average, there were less dentists per practice in inner regional and remote and very remote areas by the end of the study. Conclusion: There has been an improvement in spatial access to private dental services in regional areas of Australia, but slower rate of growth of dentist numbers compared to population growth resulted in poorer access to dental services and large population numbers must still travel outside their local Statistical Area 2 census district to access dental care.

Oral Health Problem in Indonesia: An Ecological Analysis

“…Even though that year the number of dentists increased, the number of registered dentists has not been able to keep up with population growth. The number of dentists who practice in remote, remote, and very remote areas is still not sufficient 23 .…”

Management of dental emergencies amongst Australian general medical practitioners – A case‐vignette study

“…As a result, patients residing in the regional and remote setting cannot always seek continuous care. There has always been an uneven distribution of dental practices in rural and remote areas and in socio‐economically disadvantaged areas 8,24 . In Australia, only 15% of the total dental treatments are provided under the public system where the eligibility is based on the income status 10 .…”

“…In regional to remote Australia, patients are required to travel long distances to access a dental practitioner 8 . However, over the past decade, there has been an improvement in the dentist‐to‐patient ratio in the regional to remote areas 8,9 .…”

“…7 In regional to remote Australia, patients are required to travel long distances to access a dental practitioner. 8 However, over the past decade, there has been an improvement in the dentist-to-patient ratio in the regional to remote areas. 8,9 In Australia, the majority of the dental treatments provided are through private practice (85%), 10 leaving the remainder to access public dental services, or with no access to treatment at all.…”

“…8 However, over the past decade, there has been an improvement in the dentist-to-patient ratio in the regional to remote areas. 8,9 In Australia, the majority of the dental treatments provided are through private practice (85%), 10 leaving the remainder to access public dental services, or with no access to treatment at all. Untreated dental diseases can have systemic complications in the long term, 11 and lead to preventable hospitalizations.…”