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Teledentistry From Research to Practice: A Tale of Nineteen Countries Publisher



El Tantawi M1 ; Lam WYH2 ; Giraudeau N3 ; Virtanen JI4 ; Matanhire C5 ; Chifamba T5 ; Sabbah W6 ; Gomaa N7 ; Almaweri SA8 ; Uribe SE9, 10, 11 ; Mohebbi SZ12 ; Hasmun N13 ; Guan G13 ; Polonowita A13 Show All Authors
Authors
  1. El Tantawi M1
  2. Lam WYH2
  3. Giraudeau N3
  4. Virtanen JI4
  5. Matanhire C5
  6. Chifamba T5
  7. Sabbah W6
  8. Gomaa N7
  9. Almaweri SA8
  10. Uribe SE9, 10, 11
  11. Mohebbi SZ12
  12. Hasmun N13
  13. Guan G13
  14. Polonowita A13
  15. Khan SB14
  16. Pisano M15
  17. Ellakany P16
  18. Baraka MM1
  19. Ali AA17
  20. Orellana Centeno JE18
  21. Pavlic V19
  22. Folayan MO20
Show Affiliations
Authors Affiliations
  1. 1. Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Dental Public Health, Faculty of Dentistry, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt
  2. 2. Prosthodontics, Restorative Dental Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
  3. 3. CEPEL, CNRS, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
  4. 4. Institute of Dentistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
  5. 5. Department of Oral Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe
  6. 6. Centre for Host Microbiome Interactions, King’s College London, London, United Kingdom
  7. 7. Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada
  8. 8. Department of Pre-Clinical Oral Health Sciences, College of Dental Medicine, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
  9. 9. Department of Conservative Dentistry and Oral Health, Riga Stradins University, Riga, Latvia
  10. 10. School of Dentistry, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile
  11. 11. Baltic Biomaterials Centre of Excellence, Headquarters at Riga Technical University, Riga, Latvia
  12. 12. Research Center for Caries Prevention, Dentistry Research Institute, Department of Community Oral Health, School of Dentistry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  13. 13. Department of Oral Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
  14. 14. Department of Prosthetic Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, South Africa
  15. 15. Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry “Scuola Medica Salernitana�, University of Salerno, Baronissi, Italy
  16. 16. Department of Substitutive Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
  17. 17. Orthodontics Department, Dental Faculty, Sirte University, Sirte, Libya
  18. 18. Faculty of Dentistry, Public Health Research Institute, University of Sierra Sur, Oaxaca, Mexico
  19. 19. Department of Periodontology and Oral Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Banja Luka, Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  20. 20. Department of Child Dental Health, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria

Source: Frontiers in Oral Health Published:2023


Abstract

Aim: The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated teledentistry research with great interest reflected in the increasing number of publications. In many countries, teledentistry programs were established although not much is known about the extent of incorporating teledentistry into practice and healthcare systems. This study aimed to report on policies and strategies related to teledentistry practice as well as barriers and facilitators for this implementation in 19 countries. Methods: Data were presented per country about information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure, income level, policies for health information system (HIS), eHealth and telemedicine. Researchers were selected based on their previous publications in teledentistry and were invited to report on the situation in their respective countries including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Chile, China, Egypt, Finland, France, Hong Kong SAR, Iran, Italy, Libya, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, United Kingdom, Zimbabwe. Results: Ten (52.6%) countries were high income, 11 (57.9%) had eHealth policies, 7 (36.8%) had HIS policies and 5 (26.3%) had telehealth policies. Six (31.6%) countries had policies or strategies for teledentistry and no teledentistry programs were reported in two countries. Teledentistry programs were incorporated into the healthcare systems at national (n = 5), intermediate (provincial) (n = 4) and local (n = 8) levels. These programs were established in three countries, piloted in 5 countries and informal in 9 countries. Conclusion: Despite the growth in teledentistry research during the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of teledentistry in daily clinical practice is still limited in most countries. Few countries have instituted teledentistry programs at national level. Laws, funding schemes and training are needed to support the incorporation of teledentistry into healthcare systems to institutionalize the practice of teledentistry. Mapping teledentistry practices in other countries and extending services to under-covered populations increases the benefit of teledentistry. 2023 El Tantawi, Lam, Giraudeau, Virtanen, Matanhire, Chifamba, Sabbah, Gomaa, Al-Maweri, Uribe, Mohebbi, Hasmun, Guan, Polonowita, Khan, Pisano, Ellakany, Baraka, Ali, Orellana Centeno, Pavlic and Folayan.
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