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. 2021 Sep 1;19:106. doi: 10.1186/s12960-021-00623-x

Table 3.

Prediction of clinical hours required to provide care at child and tooth level in 6-,12- and 15-year-olds in SL using dental therapists

Care type1 Treatment procedure2 Average time (mins) per procedure/tooth for DTs3 15-year olds
(n = 174,724)
12-year olds
(n = 169,458)
6-year olds5
(n = 221,743)
No. of children requiring treatment 4 No. of teeth requiring treatment 4 Estimated time (hours)
for DTs
No. of children requiring treatment 4 No. of teeth requiring treatment4 Estimated time (hours)
for DTs
No. of children requiring treatment 4 No. of teeth requiring treatment4 Estimated time (hours) for DTs

Oral health promotion and individualised prevention 

at child level

Oral examination 8 All children All teeth 23,297 All children All teeth 22,594 All children All teeth 29,566

Fluoride varnish

(twice a year)7

3 All children All teeth 17,472 All children All teeth 16,946 All children All teeth 22,174
Oral hygiene advice 6.8 All children 7,6716 (schools) 1,739 All children 7,6716 (schools) 1,739 All children 7,6716 (schools) 1,739
Diet advice 5.6 All children 7,6716 (schools) 1,432 All children 7,6716 (schools) 1,432 All children 7,6716 (schools) 1,432
Sub-total OHP including individualised prevention 43,940 42,711 54,911

Restoration at

tooth level

Atraumatic Restorative treatment (ART) 12.7 131,043 504,516 106,789 106,759 403,548 85,418 357,006 881,384 186,560
Tooth filling 27.8 120,560 258,137 119,604 91,508 201,893 91,121 33,261 46,522 21,555

Surgical

at

tooth level

Tooth extractions 23.9 p /21.2d 29,703 52,277 20,824 18,640 24,419 9,727 86,479 171,274 60,637
Total clinical hours 291,157 228,977 323,663

1,2 Informed by Refs. [40]  + [42] + [43]  + Panel of members from the ICCMS, KCL and Public Sector Dentistry in SL

3 Ref. [41]

4 Total children in each of the three key age groups estimated from—Statistics Sierra Leone. 2015 Population and Housing Census. [Available from: https://www.statistics.sl/images/StatisticsSL/Documents/Census/2015/sl_2015_phc_thematic_report_on_pop_structure_and_pop_distribution.pdf. Accessed 15 Feb 2017]

5 Includes timings for treatment procedures for both permanent(p) and primary (d) teeth informed by 3

6 Total no. of schools informed by—Ministry of Education Science and Technology (MEST). Making Progress –Schools and Students in Sierra Leone. [Available from: http://wbgfiles.worldbank.org/documents/hdn/ed/saber/supporting_doc/AFR/Sierra%20Leone/ECD/SL%20SCR%202010_.pdf. Accessed on: 25 Sept 2018]

7 Two visits in a school in a year following—Public Health England (PHE). Delivering better oral health: an evidence-based toolkit for prevention. [Available from: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/605266/Delivering_better_oral_health.pdf. Accessed 05 March 2020]. London: PHE 2017