Comparing the barriers to oral health between the adult Gozitan population and the adult Maltese population

Abstract

The Gozitan population can be considered as a geographically isolated in Malta’s archipelago, with its own health profile and requirements. Therefore, Agius (2018) addressed the need to focus on the barriers to oral health amongst the Gozitan population, indicating that oral hygiene routines and maintenance were not adequate. By identifying these barriers, the dental community and policy makers can better understand and react to mitigate these challenges and hence minimize the risk of oral disease and improve quality of life. Furthermore, identification of the barriers may allow dental clinicians to further understand the population holistically and in turn, adjust to making oral health more accessible for the whole population. A probability sampling technique of 100 adult Gozitans and 100 adult Maltese above the age of 18 was used as the population sample. The participants were chosen randomly by choosing every third person passing by in various areas in Malta and Gozo. The areas included Victoria, Sliema, Msida and Valletta. When the hardcopy questionnaires were distributed, an intermediary was used to help distribute the questionnaire on my behalf. Online access to the questionnaire was available through Google Forms and this was advertised through my social media platforms. For participants to be eligible to participate in this study they had to be 18 or over and have a Maltese or Gozitan citizenship. For both the Maltese and Gozitan population the most prevalent barriers were not feeling the need to visit the dental team, feeling uneasy during the Covid-19 pandemic and not having enough time. Furthermore, both populations displayed rather good dental attendance patterns, but rather poor oral hygiene routine and oral health knowledge. Furthermore, when comparing region with the various barriers, dental attendance patterns and oral hygiene some significant discrepancies were noted. The main barriers experienced by both the Maltese and Gozitan populations coincide with dental fear, dental accessibility, oral health literacy, and financial constraints. Some of the proposed solutions to tackling these barriers may include implementing policies that support evidence and population-based strategies to help make the dental seeking process easier and more effective.