Open AccessPay‐for‐Performance in Dentistry: What We Know
Author(s) -
VoineaGriffin Andreea,
Rindal D. Brad,
Fellows Jeffrey L.,
Barasch Andrei,
Gilbert Gregg H.,
Safford Monika M.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal for healthcare quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.374
H-Index - 27
eISSN - 1945-1474
pISSN - 1062-2551
DOI - 10.1111/j.1945-1474.2009.00064.x
Subject(s) - payment , dental care , quality (philosophy) , relevance (law) , service (business) , pay for performance , medical care , primary care , scale (ratio) , medicine , dentistry , business , family medicine , health care , marketing , philosophy , physics , finance , epistemology , quantum mechanics , political science , economics , law , economic growth
Little is known about the effect of a pay‐for‐performance system (P4P) on primary medical care providers and even less is known about its potential impact in dentistry. Based on the growing acceptance of performance‐based reimbursements in medicine and the dissemination of innovative technologies, structures, and processes of care from medical to dental services, it is likely that the dental profession will face performance‐based payments in the not‐too‐distant future. In this paper, we present the current experience of P4P in primary medical care that has relevance to dentistry and discuss the dental performance‐based programs to date. Taking into consideration these lessons, the structure of dental service delivery in the United States, and the paucity of evidence‐based quality indicators in dentistry, we provide several guidelines for the design of P4P pilot programs for dental services. We conclude that large‐scale implementation of P4P for dentistry may not be a realistic option before significant progress is achieved in quality of dental care indicators.