Task allocation in periodontal treatment among older adults in public oral health services in Helsinki, Finland, from 2007 to 2016.

The demand for non‐surgical periodontal treatment (NSPT) is increasing due to longer life expectancy and reduced edentulism. This descriptive study examined quantitatively the task allocation between dentists and dental hygienists and the influence of patient age on NSPT provision using aggregated d...

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Publicado en:European Journal of Oral Sciences Vol. 134; no. 2; pp. 1 - 11
Autores principales: Kokkonen, Antti, Hiltunen, Kaija, Vehkalahti, Miira M., Mäntylä, Päivi
Formato: research tables/charts Journal Article
Publicado: Wiley-Blackwell Apr2026
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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      jtl: European Journal of Oral Sciences
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      dt: Apr2026
      vid: 134
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      pub: Wiley-Blackwell
      place: Malden, Massachusetts
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        190640999
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        10.1111/eos.70068
        192223990
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        atl: Task allocation in periodontal treatment among older adults in public oral health services in Helsinki, Finland, from 2007 to 2016.
      aug:
        au:
          Kokkonen, Antti
          Hiltunen, Kaija
          Vehkalahti, Miira M.
          Mäntylä, Päivi
        affil: Institute of Dentistry, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland
      sug:
        subj:
          Periodontal Diseases In Old Age
          Periodontal Diseases Therapy
          Public Health Dentistry
          Oral Health
          Task Performance and Analysis
          Health Care Delivery
          Treatment Outcomes
          Public Health
          Human
          Descriptive Research
          Descriptive Statistics
          Finland
          Quantitative Studies
          Dentists
          Dental Hygienists
          Aged
          Confidence Intervals
          Periodontics
          Dental Care for Older Persons
          Workload
          Data Analysis Software
          Aged: 65+ years
      ab: The demand for non‐surgical periodontal treatment (NSPT) is increasing due to longer life expectancy and reduced edentulism. This descriptive study examined quantitatively the task allocation between dentists and dental hygienists and the influence of patient age on NSPT provision using aggregated data from electronic patient records of patients aged 60+ attending public oral healthcare in Helsinki, Finland, in the period 2007–2016. Nearly 50% of the patients received NSPT, either time‐based or complex treatments. Of all appointments, 7% involved time‐based NSPT by dentists and 13% by dental hygienists. NSPT comprised 98% of all periodontal procedures, with dental hygienists performing 60%. Dentists mainly provided short (<20 min) and ≥20 min treatments, each accounting for 8%–13% per age group, whereas longer and complex treatments were rare (1%–4%) and declined with age group. Dental hygienists increasingly performed ≥20 min treatments in the older age groups (12%–22%), with ≥30 min treatments being most common (32%–37%). Although ≥45 min procedures were infrequent, dental hygienists performed them twice as often as dentists, with a decreasing trend in the older patient groups. No obvious differences were found across study years. Findings emphasize dental hygienists' central role in periodontal care and suggest age‐related differences in treatment duration and provider allocation.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        research
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
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