Citation Information :
Elizabeth S, John PT, Juneja V. Preparedness of Dentists and Dental Operatories during and Post COVID-19 Pandemic. J South Asian Assoc Pediatr Dent 2021; 4 (2):122-127.
Context: Among various healthcare workers, dental professionals are at higher risk of getting infected from coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) infections, provided they make changes and take necessary precautions for the safety of both doctors and patients in the dental clinic.
Aim and objective: Assessment of the knowledge, attitude, and practices of Indian dentists in the dental clinic during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Settings and design: A questionnaire-based online cross-sectional survey was conducted among Indian dentists.
Materials and methods: The questionnaire comprised of 18 closed-ended questions distributed in four sections on demographics, knowledge, attitude, and practices.
Statistical analysis used: Responses were summarized as frequencies and percentages. Intergroup comparisons were made using the Chi-square test, one-way ANOVA test, and independent Student's t-test.
Results: A total of 304 responses from dentists all over India were received. Among MDS, 64.9% of dentists showed sufficient knowledge, while only 42.5% had sufficient knowledge among BDS. The findings were statistically significant (p = 0.001). Sixty-eight percentage of MDS showed a positive attitude, whereas only 46.3% of BDS and 41.4% of MDS came under the category of dentists with high-level practice. Although the findings related to attitude (p = 0.056) and practices (p = 0.360) were not statistically significant.
Conclusion: The study concluded that despite having sufficient knowledge and a positive attitude, the level of practice of dentists in their dental setup with this changing scenario needs refinement.
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