Enhancing patient-centred care in dentistry: a narrative review

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Patient-centred care (PCC) is widely used within the medical setting, but there is a need for more research on PCC implementation in dentistry. Sources of data A narrative review was conducted with literature identified from the Ovid Interface, including several databases such as Embase and Medline. Areas of agreement PCC is associated with better health outcomes for patients, and greater work satisfaction among healthcare professionals. Areas of controversy Efforts to implement PCC in dentistry are lacking due to several issues including non-consensus about PCC definition and lack of explicit guidelines on how to implement PCC in dentistry. Growing points and areas timely for developing research A theory-derived model of PCC explicitly designed for the dental setting was identified. This serves as a starting point to enhance PCC in dentistry, though further research is needed to empirically test the implementation of this model.