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Computer use in private dental practice in Australia, 1991
Author(s) -
Hou Ann Y. S. C.,
Barnard P. D.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
australian dental journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.701
H-Index - 71
eISSN - 1834-7819
pISSN - 0045-0421
DOI - 10.1111/j.1834-7819.1993.tb03062.x
Subject(s) - private practice , dental practice , dentistry , medicine , family medicine
There was a 70 per cent response to a mail questionnaire to a 1:3 sample of Australian Dental Association members in private practices (n = 1931). Computers were used by 37 per cent of practices. Main computer applications used were for: accounting (84%); patient billing (80%); word processing (79%); and patient recall (61 %). External bureau services were used by 4 per cent of practices with most computers being in‐house (single terminal 66%; multiple terminal 33%). The more dentists in a practice, the more likely was a computer to be used. Principal users were secretary/receptionists. Service and software were the most important factors in choice of computer system. Many practice computer users (67%) also had a Personal Computer at home compared with only 36 per cent of the non‐users. Many respondents indicated the need for continuing education in computers (67% users; 61% non‐users). More than half of the non‐users indicated future use of computers for accounting, billing and recall. There has been a considerable increase in the use of computers in private practice (37%) since the Australian Dental Association Dental Practice Survey in 1983/84 (9%).