ABSTRACT

Objective: To gauge factors determining good access to dental clinics for oral health care and to assess the impact of sociodemographic factors on access to oral healthcare facilities among adults of high- and low-income families.

Methodology: This cross-sectional study included 602 mixed discipline students enrolled in the public and private academic institutes in Lahore using a simple random sampling method. A structured questionnaire with a few open-ended questions was distributed among study participants. The information was collected regarding sociodemographic attributes and factors determining good access to dental clinics for oral health care. The data were analyzed using frequencies, percentages, mean and standard deviation. Also, the multiple linear regression was used to determine the relationship between sociodemographic attributes (i.e., age, gender, education, etc.) and access to oral healthcare facilities.

Results: Of 650 questionnaires, a total of 602 were returned, giving a response rate of 92.62 %. The results showed that the majority of the participants from low-income families (87.0%) had a lot of trouble paying a US$100 or equivalent dental bill. The participants from high-income families (64.90%) visit a dentist for a check-up at least once a year and 89.20% of the participant had visited the dental clinic last year. The multiple linear regression showed that access to dental clinics for oral health care was significantly affected by family head education, and the number of family members among low-income families while gender, family head age and number of family members were main predictors among high-income families.

Conclusion: The study concludes that socio-demographic factors including gender, family size, family head age and family head education influence the good access to oral healthcare facilities among people belonging to low- and high-income families.

Key Words: oral health, socioeconomic status, health services accessibility, developing countries