Table 1.
Summary of key oral health system assessment indicators of Kerala
| Sl. No. | Indicators | Figures | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service delivery indicators | |||
| 1 | Number of government sector hospitals offering dental care | 112 | |
| 2 | Number of government hospitals for 1 lakh population | 0.3 | |
| 3 | Number of private clinics per 1 lakh population | 4.9 | |
| 4 | Predominant service delivery method | Private | |
| Oral health workforce indicators | |||
| 5 | Number of dentists working in government sector (DHS and DME) | 286 | |
| 6 | Proportion of dentists working in government sector | 2% | |
| 7 | Number of dentists registered with Kerala Dental Council (Dec 2015) | 15183 | |
| 8 | Number of dentists registered with Indian Dental Association (Kerala) | 4209 | |
| 9 | Number of dentists per 1 lakh population | 4.54 | |
| 10 | Dentist population ratio | 1:2200 | |
| 11 | Number of dental colleges | Government | 5 |
| Private | 21 | ||
| 12 | Number of BDS seats per year | 1880 | |
| 13 | Number of MDS seats per year | 201 | |
| 14 | Annual number of dental graduates per 1 lakh population | 6.22 | |
| 15 | Number of dental hygienists | 509 | |
| 16 | Number of dental mechanics | 743 | |
| 17 | Hygienist to dentist ratio | 0.03 | |
| 18 | Technician to dentist ratio | 0.05 | |
| Access to essential medicines | |||
| 19 | Average availability of essential medicines for dentistry in pharmacies | 60% | |
| Median consumer price ratio | 3.26 | ||
| Health financing indicators | |||
| 20 | GDP spent on health care (India) | 1.04 (2011) | |
| 21 | Oral health expenditure as a percentage of total health expenditure | NA | |
| 22 | Predominant mode of payment for dental services | OOP | |
| 23 | Coverage for dental procedures in state government schemes | Nil | |
| Health information system indicator | |||
| 24 | Health Information System (Reporting of dental procedures through HMIS) | Present | |