Assessment of Oral Hygiene Practices of Medical Doctors and Physician Candidates

Year 2025, Volume: 7 Issue: 2, 221 - 230, 29.08.2025

Merve Bilmez Selen , Hatice Aydoğdu , Beril Demircan , Pinar Demir , Mehmet Cengiz Yakıncı

Abstract

Aim: Oral diseases are considered a significant public health problem due to their high prevalence. Raising awareness in society about oral hygiene and promoting positive health behaviors are key objectives for oral health educators. This study aims to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of healthcare professionals regarding oral health.
Material and Methods: Before the study commenced, informed consent was obtained from all participants. Data were collected using a pre-designed and validated questionnaire consisting of 20 questions. Participants' age, gender, professional title, personal oral hygiene habits, and advice provided to patients regarding oral hygiene were evaluated. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 26 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Chi-square and t-tests were applied for statistical comparisons.
Results: A total of 406 healthcare professionals participated in the study. Among them, 54.9% were female and 45.1% were male, with a mean age of 25 years. The proportion of medical doctors who visited the dentist for routine check-ups was 11.6%. A statistically significant relationship (p<0.05) was found between the importance of oral hygiene in medical education and the ability to brush correctly, use dental floss properly, and provide guidance to patients seeking oral hygiene advice.
Conclusion: The findings of this study highlight the necessity of incorporating oral and dental health education more extensively in medical school curricula. Enhancing awareness about oral health not only improves personal hygiene practices but also enhances the quality of healthcare services provided to patients.

Keywords

Medical doctor , Preventive dentistry , Oral and dental health , Public health.

Ethical Statement

There was no data obtained from animals or human experiments for this article.

Supporting Institution

No funding support received.

Tıp Doktorları ve Hekim Adaylarının Ağız Hijyeni Uygulamalarının Değerlendirilmesi

Abstract

Amaç: Ağız hastalıkları, görülme sıklığının yüksek olması nedeniyle bir halk sağlığı sorunu olarak kabul edilmektedir. Topluma olumlu ağız sağlığı bilgi ve davranışlarını kazandırmak ağız sağlığı eğitimcilerinin temel kaygısıdır. Sağlık çalışanlarının ağız sağlığına yönelik bilgi, tutum ve uygulamaları, toplumdaki ilk temasta sağlık eğitimini yaygınlaştırabilecekleri için toplumu büyük ölçüde etkilemektedir. Bu çalışmanın amacı sağlık çalışanlarının bilgi, tutum ve uygulamalarını değerlendirmektir.
Gereç ve Yöntemler: Sağlık çalışanları arasında ağız sağlığına yönelik bilgi, tutum ve uygulamaları değerlendirmek için tanımlayıcı kesitsel bir araştırma tasarlandı.Araştırmaya başlamadan önce sağlık çalışanlarından bilgilendirilmiş onam alındı. Veriler önceden tasarlanmış ve test edilmiş bir anket aracılığıyla toplanmıştır. Veriler SPSS 26 kullanılarak analiz edildi.
Bulgular: Katılımcıların 54,9’u kadın cinsiyete sahipken, 45,1’ i erkekti. Yaş ortalaması yaklaşık olarak 25 olarak hesaplandı. Rutin kontrol için diş hekimine başvuran tıp hekimi oranı ise %11,6 idi. Tıp eğitiminde oral hijyenin önemi ile doğru fırçalama yapabilme, doğru diş ipi kullanımı, tıp hekimlerine oral hijyen konusunda danışan hastaya tavsiye verebilme arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı ilişki bulundu.
Sonuç: Tıp fakülteleri müfredatında ağız-diş sağlığı ve öneminin eğitim müfredatına dahil edilmesi ve bu konunun önemsenmesi gerekmektedir.

Keywords

Tıp hekimi , koruyucu diş hekimliği , ağız diş sağlığı , halk sağlığı

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