December 2015

Objectives: To adapt an existing medical questionnaire on patient-provider communication for use in the dental setting, and to evaluate the performance of the measure in a first dental encounter (validity and reliability). Methods: A patient feedback questionnaire on consultation skills was adapted for use in dental settings through content and convergent validity. A survey of dentist consultation skills was conducted among adults attending a teaching hospital. Patients self-completed a 16-item Dental Patient Feedback on Consultation skills (DPFC) questionnaire during their first dental consultations. Repeat assessments were conducted on ~10% of the sample. Variations in DPFC responses (scale and item level) were examined in relation to socio-demographics and dental attendance pattern in bivariate and regression analyses. Internal reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) and test-retest reliability (Intraclass Correlation Coefficient - ICC) were examined. Results: A DPFC questionnaire was derived following minor modifications. The clarity of items ranged from 81.1-100% and content validity index ranged from 0.73-1.00. Exploratory item factor analysis showed a one-dimensional construct. The response rate to the survey was 90.5% (389/430). Variations in DPFC scores with respect to global rating of satisfaction were apparent (P<0.001). Cronbach’s alpha value was 0.94 and ICC value was 0.89. Bivariate and regression analyses identified dental attendance pattern as a key factor associated with DPFC (P<0.05); but no significant differences were observed with respect to socio-demographic factors. Conclusions: A DPFC questionnaire was adapted with acceptable validity and reliability. Dental service utilization pattern was associated with dentist-patient clinical communication rather than socio-demographics. Key words: clinic visit, clinical communication, dental, consultation, dentist-patient relations, Hong Kong, Chinese