Opinion|Reader’s opinion
Diseases affecting the patient’s susceptibility to infection and bleeding tendency must be known to the attending dentist or dental hygienist.
In an opinion piece (HS 12.4.) the reasons why the dentist had looked at the data of the patient’s gynecologist visit were considered.
The mouth is a part of a person, and procedures performed in the mouth affect general health. For most of us, filling a chipped tooth is a procedure that does little to change the course of life. However, there are people among us for whom a procedure performed in the mouth can lead to, for example, life-threatening blood poisoning.
Like other healthcare professionals, oral healthcare workers must also know their patient’s possible risk factors affecting the procedure. Safe treatment requires that the treating dentist or dental hygienist is aware of the diseases and medications affecting the patient’s susceptibility to infection and bleeding tendency. In this case, it is possible to identify at-risk patients, and if necessary, the patient can be protected with an antibiotic for the duration of the procedure or the treatment can be performed in hospital conditions.
Patients themselves do not always have information about the effect of their own diseases on treatment procedures, and the healthcare professional must obtain the necessary information so that the treatment can be carried out safely. In terms of oral healthcare, a visit to a gynecologist is comparable to, for example, a visit to an otorhinolaryngologist. Each healthcare professional checks the patient’s illnesses and medications and records them in the patient records. When this information is shared, it makes the work of both the oral healthcare professional and the gynecologist easier and improves patient safety.
Our goal is to guarantee safe treatment for every patient. Cooperation between all aspects of healthcare is important.
Antti Pakkanen
senior physician, licentiate in dentistry
Johanna Uittamo
docent, university lecturer, specialist dentist
The reader’s opinions are speeches written by HS readers, selected and edited by the HS editorial board. You can leave an opinion piece or familiarize yourself with the principles of writing at the address www.hs.fi/kiryotamielipidekeisuis/.
#Readers #Opinion #dentist #identify #potential #risk #patients
