Page 44 - FINAL COMPENDIUM 2020-2021 27.2.2022

FACILITATORS AND BARRIERS TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF PRESCHOOL ORAL
HEALTHCARE PROGRAMME IN MALAYSIA FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF DENTAL
THERAPISTS: A QUALITATIVE STUDY

Nurdin MF, Yusof ZYM
Introduction: The Preschool Oral Healthcare Programme (POHP) was introduced in
Malaysia by the Ministry of Health in 1984 to provide oral healthcare for 5 to 6-year-old
children. Most of its evaluations were directed towards assessing children's oral health
status. Little emphasis has been placed on assessing the programme feasibility from the
perspectives of the oral health personnel. Objective: The objective of the study was to
explore the facilitators and barriers to the implementation of the POHP using the
perspectives of dental therapists (DT) in Selangor state, Malaysia. Materials and methods:
This study adopt a qualitative approach using focus group discussion (FGD) as the data
collection method. The data were transcribed verbatim followed by thematic analysis
using Nvivo software. Results: A total of 13 FGDs had been conducted involving 114 DT.
The main facilitators were good dental teamwork, assistance from schools and teachers,
sufficient training of DT, adequate support from dental administration, and good
cooperation from the children. The main barriers were lack of financial support,
manpower, time, inadequate support from preschools and children, language barrier, and
accessibility to sugary food and drinks at schools. Conclusions: The study provided
important insights regarding the POHP that would be useful for programme improvement
through policy changes, workforce training, and enhanced school participation.

Keywords: Malaysia, Dental therapists, Evaluation, Oral health, Preschool children

Published in Children 2020, 7(12), 266; https://doi.org/10.3390/children7120266

Dr Muhammad Farid bin Nurdin
Petaling District Dental Office
Shah Alam
Selangor, Malaysia

Prof. Dr Zamros Yuzadi bin Mohd Yusof
Department of Community Oral Health & Clinical Prevention
Faculty of Dentistry
University of Malaya
Kuala Lumpur

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