Barriers in accessing dental care A review of the barriers faced by individuals in accessing dental care. DE

Inequalities and injustices in health are prevalent even today. Oral health inequalities are not merely the differences in the oral health status of the rich and the poor. As in general medical health, there exists a continuous step wise relationship across the social spectrum, with oral health being worse as one descends the social hierarchy. It is more in the dental stream than in any other medical/ paramedical stream. The uncertainty of dental diseases is what makes them uninsurable. The prognosis of any treated tooth will majorly depend on the individual. The dentist could try his/ her best to treat a tooth and if the individual does not maintain it well, post operatively, the tooth could succumb to secondary infections. This is just one of the many reasons which make all dental services uninsurable. Affordability is the most common barrier in accessing dental services for many individuals. Especially, those from lower socio economic backgrounds. Public Health research has highlighted that health inequalities are caused by broad conditions in which people are born, live, grow, work and age ¿ ie. the so called ¿Social Determinants¿.