Table 2. Dentists perspectives and experiences regarding cultural competency.
M: Male; F: female; G: government; P: private; R: respondent; 1-18: respondent index; 25-55: age range
| Themes | Subthemes | Representative quotations |
| Understanding cultural competency | Awareness of cultural diversity | "I realized that patients specially from rural backgrounds have specific cultural beliefs about dental health that I wasn’t aware of." (M34PR07) |
| Cultural training in dental education | "During my dental college years, cultural sensitivity was never a priority; we only learned about clinical aspects." (F30PR013) | |
| Impact of cultural differences on patient care | "Sometimes, lack of awareness of cultural beliefs and language barriers make it hard to explain treatment plans to patients, affecting trust and compliance." (M38GR09) | |
| Challenges in cultural competency | Limited cultural competency training | "There is no formal training on how to handle diverse and marginalized patient populations, and we mostly rely on personal experiences." (M41PR16) |
| Communication barriers | "Communicating with patients who don't speak the same language(urdu or English) was very difficult, especially when explaining technical procedures." (F47GR03) | |
| Stereotyping and bias | "In some cases, dentists themselves hold certain biases that they’re unaware of, which affects their patient interactions." (M35PR14) | |
| Facilitators of cultural competency | Institutional support for cultural sensitivity | "Our dental college organized few workshops on social accountability in which we learnt about cultural competency and that was very helpful.” (M28GR17) |
| Mentorship and peer support | "As I was not the day scholar senior dentists and colleagues often helped me in dealing complex cultural issues with patients." (F48PR15) | |
| Patient-provider trust | "When patients see that I understand their cultural background, it immediately builds trust and makes the consultation smoother." (M37GR08) | |
| Recommendations for Improvement | Inclusion of cultural competency in curriculum | "There needs to be a dedicated module on cultural competency in our dental education to prepare future practitioners." (M28PR10) |
| Continuous professional development (CPD) on cultural sensitivity | "Workshops on cultural competency should be part of CPD so we can continually improve our skills." (F41PR12) | |
| Community engagement | "Dentists should be encouraged to engage with the communities they serve to understand their unique cultural needs better." (M33GR11) |