Kate Parker

Introduction Although often used in medicine, video consultations are less commonly used in dentistry. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the orthodontic team at Croydon University Hospital introduced the use of video consultations to provide continued patient care at a time when face-to-face appointments were not possible. Aim To assess patient and clinician satisfaction with the Attend Anywhere video consultations used by the orthodontic team at Croydon University Hospital. Method Two separate satisfaction questionnaires were piloted and developed: one for patients and one for clinicians. All patients scheduled for a video consultation between 15 May 2020 and 15 June 2020 were invited to complete a patient satisfaction questionnaire at the end of their consultation. Results In total, 114 patients attended video consultations in the time period assessed, of which 111 completed a satisfaction questionnaire (97.4% response rate). Fifty-six percent of patients were female with an average age of 16.5 years. Patient satisfaction was highest for the video consultations being easy to use and convenient. Over 90% of patients strongly agreed or agreed with all of the satisfaction statements and in terms of whether they would recommend using video consultations. Approximately one-third of patients preferred the video consultation to a face-to-face appointment and one-third of patients were neutral. Conclusion This study found high levels of patient satisfaction with video consultations in orthodontics. Thoughtful consideration needs to be given to the application of video clinics, going forwards, to ensure that high standards of patient care are maintained.

Introduction Video consultations are currently not commonly used in dentistry; therefore, most clinicians lack experience in using this technology and seeing patients in this way. When implementing video clinics, it is important to assess clinician satisfaction as well as patient satisfaction to allow for developments and improvements, and to ensure that the highest levels of care are provided. Aim To assess patient and clinician satisfaction with the Attend Anywhere video consultations used by the orthodontic team at Croydon University Hospital. Method Two separate satisfaction questionnaires were piloted and developed: one for patients and one for clinicians. For all patients scheduled for a video consultation between 15 May 2020 and 15 June 2020 in the orthodontic department, all clinicians were invited to complete a clinician satisfaction questionnaire at the end of the consultation to assess satisfaction with the encounter. Results In total, 114 patients attended video consultations, for which there were 128 clinician completed questionnaires, as some patients were seen by multiple clinicians on multidisciplinary clinics. Over 89% of clinicians strongly agreed or agreed with all of the satisfaction statements, with the highest levels of satisfaction being for ease of use and convenience. Over 95% of clinicians strongly agreed or agreed that they would recommend using video consultations and over 89% preferred using a video consultation, if appropriate, to a face-to-face appointment. Overall, the highest levels of satisfaction were for retainer reviews. Conclusion High levels of clinician satisfaction were found with the telemedicine clinics in orthodontics across a range of different appointment types and encounters. Satisfaction varied according to the type of appointment; therefore, this should be a factor for consideration when planning the most appropriate use of telemedicine clinics going forwards.

Introduction: Retention is a crucial part of orthodontic treatment; however, patients often do not wear their retainers as advised. The British Orthodontic Society developed the ‘Hold that Smile’ campaign in 2017, to improve patient knowledge about retention. Information is provided in two formats: a cartoon and a conventional film. Objective: To assess whether patients find the ‘Hold that Smile’ videos useful and whether they improved patients’ intended retainer wear. The gold standard was that 90% of patients should intend to wear their retainers in the long term after watching the videos. Design: National multicentre audit. Setting: Nine units in the UK. Methods: Patients aged ⩾ 10 years, in fixed appliances or retention, watched the retainer videos and then completed a questionnaire that was designed specifically for this audit. Each unit collected data for approximately 30 patients. Results: Data were collected for 278 patients in total. The average age was 17.9 years; 64.4% of patients were female and 35.6% were male. Most patients (86.3%) watched both videos and, of these, 44.1% preferred the film, 31.3% preferred the cartoon and 24.6% had no preference. The majority of patients (81.3%) felt that the film provided them with new information, compared with a lower percentage (48.5%) for the cartoon. More patients said they would recommend the film (76.3%) compared with the cartoon (63.3%). Before watching the videos, 77.0% of patients felt they knew about long-term retainer wear and 74.3% of those intended to wear their retainers in the long term. After watching the videos, 96.4% of all patients thought they would now wear their retainers long term. Conclusion: After watching the videos, there was a notable increase in the number of patients planning to wear their retainers long term and the gold standard was met. Therefore, these videos may be beneficial in improving understanding and compliance with retention.

Objective: As the representative body for orthodontic specialists, the British Orthodontic Society (BOS) provides advice and guidance to professionals and patients on a variety of topics. The BOS receive frequent queries from professionals and patients and, where appropriate, provide advice and guidance. By reflecting on the types of queries received, it is hoped that general guidance can be developed and ‘frequently asked questions’ information established to improve knowledge in these particular areas. Design: Retrospective assessment of queries raised to the BOS. Setting: BOS headquarters, London. Methods: All queries raised to the BOS by professionals and patients from January 2017 to October 2018 were collated and divided into those raised by dental professionals or by patients. Within each group, all queries were further subcategorised into different topic areas. For each of the main topics, guidance will be developed to improve clinician and patient knowledge in these areas. Results: In the time period assessed, 422 queries were received to the BOS, 51.8% (n = 229) were from patients and 48.2% (n = 213) from professionals. Commissioning was the most common topic queried by professionals (34.3%), which included NHS contracts and tendering. Queries regarding associate matters (9.4%), specific clinical queries (9.4%) and BOS issues (8.9%) were also common topics raised by professionals. The most common topic queried by patients was the eligibility for NHS treatment (29.3%), followed by specific clinical queries (22.3%) and seeking recommendations for clinicians (10.5%). Conclusions: Overall, a large number of queries were received by the BOS. While some queries required specific information from the BOS, the majority of queries could be addressed through already published information and guidance. This project identifies the more common queries and provides clear guidance on where to find the appropriate advice.

Facial feminisation surgery (FFS) aims to feminise the face by changing masculine facial features to feminine ones. It is commonly undertaken for transsexual individuals who are transitioning from male to female or for women who wish to further feminise their facial appearance. Assessment and treatment planning by a multidisciplinary team is essential for any patient considering FFS. Orthodontists have an important role within this team as patients may first present to an orthodontist expressing concerns about the appearance of their jaws. Therefore, it is important that orthodontists have a detailed understanding of FFS procedures, to enable good patient communication, thorough patient assessment and onwards referral where required. This article reviews the common FFS procedures, their indications, and the benefits and risks of each procedure and highlights the role of the orthodontist.