Are we Getting It Right First Time? An exploration of clinical coding practices within a UK paediatric dental hospital department.
Journal
British dental journal
ISSN: 1476-5373
Titre abrégé: Br Dent J
Pays: England
ID NLM: 7513219
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
10 2023
10 2023
Historique:
received:
24
01
2023
accepted:
28
05
2023
revised:
22
05
2023
medline:
30
10
2023
pubmed:
28
10
2023
entrez:
27
10
2023
Statut:
ppublish
Résumé
Introduction Issues arising from the current coding system in dentistry have been highlighted. Available codes are considered to lack clarity and fail to reflect all dental specialties. There are no paediatric-specific codes, which means codes from other specialties are used, which may not accurately reflect the work carried out.Aim This paper aims to explore the range of codes and the consistency and accuracy of current coding practices within the paediatric dentistry department at Newcastle Dental Hospital, and explore the potential impact of introducing new speciality-specific codes for the aforementioned procedures.Method Data were retrospectively collected to determine whether the following treatments had been undertaken, and if so, which procedure code had been used for the treatment: inhalation sedation; dietary advice; acclimatisation; preformed metal crowns, silver diamine fluoride application; and apexification. All codes used within the department for a six-month period were also reviewed retrospectively and the frequency in which procedures relating to the potential new codes would be undertaken within the department was estimated to facilitate consideration of potential financial impact of the introduction of new codes.Results Codes utilised for the aforementioned procedures did not accurately reflect work carried out despite being relatively consistent. The potential new codes corresponded to procedures that were commonly undertaken within the department.Discussion This study highlights shortcomings in the coding system relating to a lack of applicable codes for paediatric dentistry procedures. Introduction of new speciality-specific codes should help to address this deficit to ensure a more accurate representation of the needs of the community to help commissioning and workforce planning.
Identifiants
pubmed: 37891300
doi: 10.1038/s41415-023-6390-8
pii: 10.1038/s41415-023-6390-8
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Pagination
615-620Commentaires et corrections
Type : CommentIn
Informations de copyright
© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to the British Dental Association.
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