Private Dental Clinic Management Experiences during the COVID-19 Crisis in Bangkok, Thailand: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

This study aimed to describe the experiences of private dental clinic providers in Bangkok managing their clinics during the COVID-19 crisis and to propose suggestions. A qualitative study was conducted. Nineteen private dental clinics were purposive recruited through snowball sampling to get various characteristics of clinic and were in-depth interviewed with semi-structured questionnaire. Content analysis was used to analyze the data. The study found that all dental clinics faced challenges in patient management due to various regulations, such as, COVID-19 screening was required before providing dental care, clinic environment and chair-side practices should reduce aerosol particles by improving ventilation system, air conditioning with HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filters and extraoral suction (EOS). Personal protective measures such as isolation gowns, face masks especially double surgical masks, N95 respirators, or combinations of both, were emphasized. The study also revealed that some clinic owners felt the regulations were excessive or impractical, especially the ventilation systems. It was suggested that clear and feasible guidelines, with appropriate support to comply with strict dental clinic standards were needed to maximize benefits to the public and dental professionals. Overall, the study highlighted the importance of dental clinic safety measures during the COVID-19 crisis and the need for ongoing support and regulation to ensure public safety and the continuation of dental services.