Page 126 - FINAL COMPENDIUM 2020-2021 27.2.2022

THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON THE DELIVERY OF DENTAL TREATMENT FOR
PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES – MALAYSIAN EXPERIENCE

Hamzah SZ, Vedha Raj DR

Introduction: The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a huge impact
on the delivery of healthcare across the globe. This includes the delivery of oral healthcare
in Malaysia. Special Care Dentistry (SCD), a dental specialty which focuses exclusively on
delivering dental treatment for people with disabilities (PWDs) and frail elderly, has also
been affected without any exception by the pandemic. The implementation of the
Movement Control Order (MCO) and the requirement for strict adherence to Standard
Operating Procedure (SOPs) are among the initiatives taken to control the spread of
infection in the public as well as in the healthcare facilities which have indirectly led to
undesirable impacts on the oral health of PWDs. Objectives: To highlight the impacts,
challenges and barriers faced by PWDs and oral health team in delivering care during the
pandemic. Materials and methods: This study adopted a retrospective study. The
reported data comprised all patients attending SCD clinics in 2019, 2020 and January till
May 2021 aged 16 years old and above which was recorded in a standard format of excel
spreadsheet. Descriptive analysis was done using the extracted data needed for the report
by means of tables, graphs and charts. Results: Taking 2019 as a point of reference (before
the pandemic was announced), the number of patients attending SCD clinics in the whole
country had experienced a decrease by 33.7% in 2020. Similar trend was also observed
when comparing the data from January till May 2021 and 2020 by which the service
reported a decrease in attendance by 10.6% in 2021. There was also a reduction in DOHS
visits in 2020 (21 visits) and 2021 (9 visits) in comparison with 2019 (39 visits). The similar
reduction trend was also noted in the number of patients receiving dental treatment
under general anaesthesia (GA) in 2019 (110 cases), 2020 (96 cases) and from January till
May 2021 (37 cases). Conclusion: The pandemic has given rise to a multitude of changes
that pose a challenge for PWDs to adapt, thus creating a barrier for them to receive dental
treatment in these current norms. The suspension of all elective dental procedures,
disruption of visiting clinics as well as the domiciliary oral healthcare service and
remobilization of the dental workforce to help combatting the pandemic has affected the
specialty and patients significantly.

Published in International Journal for Studies on Children, Women, Elderly and Disabled, 2021, Oct (13), ISSN 0128-309X
th
Oral presentation at the 13 Putrajaya International Conference on Children, Women, Elderly and People with Disabilities,
2021 on 11 – 12 September 2021
Dr Siti Zaleha Hamzah
Special Care Dentistry Unit
Hospital Kajang
Kajang, Selangor
Ministry of Health Malaysia

Dr Dasera Raj Vedha Raj
Special Care Dentistry Unit
Hospital Seberang Jaya
Seberang Jaya
Pulau Pinang
Ministry of Health Malaysia

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