Missed dental appointments in the United Arab Emirates

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of missed dental appointments in the U.A.E and to assess the factors involved. Random sample of 155 patients and 50 dentists was selected and data was collected from these parties using questionnaires. Analysis of data from these questionnaires provided information regarding the prevalence of this issue and its causative factors. Appointment and financial data was then collected from two private clinics and compared with the data obtained from the dentist and patient questionnaires. On average, 22.5% of dental appointments in the U.A.E are missed. The most common reasons for missing dental appointments according to patients were fear of pain and having an emergency or circumstance. The most significant factors involved were patient age, patient income, patient education, presence of pain, and patient psychology. Results showed that missed dental appointments cause an average loss of AED 800 (USD 220) per day for a dental clinic. It was concluded that this rate of missed dental appointments was unacceptable because of its negative impact on all involved parties. The key in dealing with this issue lies in altering patient psychology during the first appointment and through the implementation of missed dental appointment policies.