Practicing Dentists’ Self-Efficacy and Associated Factors in Managing the Treatment of Adults with Mental and Physical Disabilities: An Exploratory Cross-Sectional Study in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Sakher AlQahtani, Ebtissam Zakaria Murshid, Hani Talal Fadel and Saba Kassim
Additional contact information
Sakher AlQahtani: Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh 11545, Saudi Arabia
Ebtissam Zakaria Murshid: Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh 11545, Saudi Arabia
Hani Talal Fadel: Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, Taibah University Dental College & Hospital, Al-Madinah Al-Munawwrah 42353, Saudi Arabia
Saba Kassim: Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, Taibah University Dental College & Hospital, Al-Madinah Al-Munawwrah 42353, Saudi Arabia

IJERPH, 2017, vol. 14, issue 12, 1-12

Abstract: Background: Provision of oral healthcare to adults with mental and physical disabilities (AMPD) remains a challenging area across various healthcare systems. The present study aimed to assess self-reported efficacy and investigate factors associated with self-efficacy in the management of AMPD among practicing dentists in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A pilot-tested, self-administered questionnaire was distributed to a convenience sample of 1000 dentists. Descriptive and inferential analyses were performed on the collected responses. Results: Among the respondents (54%), 43% were males. Only 14% described their self-efficacy in managing AMPD as “High”. Multivariable regression analyses revealed significant associations between “High” self-efficacy and male gender (Odd ratio (OR) = 2.39, 95% CI = 1.16–4.89), experience practicing dentistry for 11 years or more (OR = 2.19, 95% CI = 1.04–4.47), specialization in pediatric dentistry (OR = 3.98, 95% CI = 1.31–12.07), previous experience in managing AMPD (OR = 4.23, 95% CI = 1.59–11.22), and awareness of regulations for managing AMPD (OR = 2.62, 95% CI = 1.42–4.38). The interaction of gender x age was significantly associated ( p = 0.028) with “High” self-efficacy. Gender-stratified analyses revealed a significant association between age and “High” self-efficacy among male dentists only. Conclusions: The findings of the present study highlight that a large percentage of dentists reported “Low/Moderate” self-efficacy in managing AMPD, particularly among female dentists. However, further studies are required to verify the factors associated with self-efficacy in the present study, and to identify other factors that may influence self-efficacy in managing AMPD.

Keywords: dental care for disabled; dentist self-efficacy; mental disability; physically disabled (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/14/12/1549/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/14/12/1549/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:14:y:2017:i:12:p:1549-:d:122395

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().