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Failure on all fronts: Qualitative analysis of the oral health care experience in individuals with intellectual disability
Author(s) -
Hassona Yazan,
Aljafari Ahmad,
Atef Ala'a,
Abdalfattah Leen,
Hosey Marie Therese
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
special care in dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.328
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1754-4505
pISSN - 0275-1879
DOI - 10.1111/scd.12550
Subject(s) - intellectual disability , feeling , medicine , qualitative research , oral health , health care , gerontology , family medicine , psychiatry , psychology , social psychology , social science , sociology , economics , economic growth
Abstract Aim To explore the oral health care experience of individuals with intellectual disability and their families. Methods A qualitative approach utilising face‐to‐face semi‐structured interviews with parents of individuals with intellectual disability. All interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim, and Qualitative Framework Analysis was used to present the results. Results Twenty‐six parents of 26 individuals with intellectual disability were interviewed. The interviewees were 10 males and 16 females, and their average age was 46.4 ± 11.2 years (range 28‐66). The average age of individuals with intellectual disability was 17.9 ± 9.2 years (range 6‐48), and there were 11 (42.3%) males and 15 (57.7%) females. The interviewees reported that challenges to oral health care do occur on multiple levels: (a) home environment; (b) primary dental care; (c) secondary dental care facilities; (d) health and education policies and systems; and (e) societal views on individuals with intellectual disability. Conclusion Individuals with intellectual disability and their families are being failed at multiple levels of oral health care, leaving parents feeling frustrated, isolated, and sometimes helpless. Collaborative efforts are needed to train families to prevent oral health disease at home, establish better primary and secondary oral health care systems, and overcome wider cultural, social, and economic barriers.