Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39159170›Full record

ArticlePloS one2024

Evaluation of oral health services and challenges faced by oral health practitioners working in Nyarugenge, Rwanda.

Emmanuel Nzabonimana, Yolanda Malele-Kolisa, Phumzile Hlongwa

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Prevalence of Non-Daily Teeth Cleaning and Its Associated Factors Among Adult Population in Rwanda.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025
    Article
  2. "Overburdened…Can't Meet Demand"-Experiences of Oral Health Professionals Providing Dental Care to Children With Special Healthcare Needs in South Africa.Special care in dentistry : official publication of the American Association of Hospital Dentists, the Academy of Dentistry for the Handicapped, and the American Society for Geriatric Dentistry
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Emmanuel NzabonimanaDepartment of Preventive and Community Dentistry, School of Dentistry, University of Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda.ORCID 0000-0002-6876-3472
Yolanda Malele-KolisaDepartment of Community Dentistry, School of Oral Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Phumzile HlongwaDepartment of Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveOral healthcare professionals encounter considerable challenges while providing services to curb the oral disease burden. The aim of this study was to explore the challenges faced by oral health practitioners providing oral health services in Nyarugenge, Rwanda and to appraise the availability and adequacy of oral hygiene equipment, instruments, and materials.

methodsThis was a cross-sectional concurrent mixed methods study. The quantitative and qualitative parts were independent during data collection and analyses and merged during the interpretation phase. All seven public health facilities and 14 dental professionals working in Nyarugenge were included in the study. Data were collected using an audit checklist and an in-depth interview guide. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data. The interviews were analyzed using thematic content analysis.

resultsMost of the dental health professionals were dental therapists (n = 11), women (n = 9), aged 31-40 years (n = 7), and with 11-20 years' experience as oral health practitioners (n = 6). There were five health centers and two hospitals that were audited for equipment, instruments, and materials. The audit of the facilities revealed that most facilities have dental equipment and instruments, but none have adequate preventive dental instruments and materials. Four broad themes emerged from the interviews with the oral health practitioners, namely human resources, supply chain management, patients' oral health awareness and service rendering, and strategic management and administration. The most significant challenges oral health practitioners faced included high dental practitioner/patient ratios, lack of adequate and appropriate equipment and materials, patients' lack of oral health awareness, and a lack of administrative support.

conclusionsWell-established community preventive interventions, such as a mobile oral health App, could reduce the patient/provider ratio by increasing population awareness of oral health and encouraging healthy behaviours. The management of the health facilities should address the human resource challenges and equipment supply chain issues.

Indexed as

Oral HealthAdultCross-Sectional StudiesDental Health ServicesDentistsFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedOral HygieneRwanda

Identifiers

PMID39159170
PMCPMC11332939

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.