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Ethics in Dentistry
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Ethics in dentistry
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Original Article
Ethics in dentistry
Sabarinath B, Department of Oral Pathology and Microbiology, Meenakshi Ammal Dental College and Hospital,
Sivapathasundharam B, Chennai, India
ABSTRACT
Objective: Dentists should build their reputation on their professional ability and integrity
and should abide by the regulations put forth by the Dental Council of India (DCI). The aim of
the study is to find out whether the code of ethics is followed in clinical practice by the dental
practitioners in Chennai.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a sample of 1128 dental
clinics in Chennai and data with respect to the name boards and advertisement were collected
by means of a personalized survey.
Results: The size of the sign board exceeded in 69% of the dental clinics. The sign board
contained attractive symbols, pictures, and wordings in 68% of the dental clinics visited. 9%
of the dental practitioners used abbreviations other than academic qualifications recognized
by DCI in their clinic board. There were signboards in places other than the clinic in 22% of
the clinics surveyed. 26% of the clinics used visual or printed media for advertisements.
Conclusion: This study concludes that ethics are not strictly followed by the dental
practitioners in their clinical practice. A proper ethical committee should be formed by the
Address for correspondence: state dental councils to monitor the practitioners and dental clinics. Also, regulatory bodies
Dr. Balaraman Sabarinath, like state dental councils and DCI should think about the revision/modification of certain
Department of Oral Pathology and
codes of ethics, particularly with respect to the name boards, as these were framed almost
Microbiology, Meenakshi Ammal
Dental College and Hospital, three decades ago.
Chennai, India.
E-mail: bsabarin@gmail.com Key words: Academic qualification, advertisements, dental clinics, ethics, sign boards
Every professional body has its own code of conduct for its As per the WHO, the dentist:population ratio is 1:7500.[5]
members. Dental profession in India is regulated by the Dental Though it is apparently fulfilled in India, there is severe
Council of India (DCI) and it is financed by the Ministry of maldistribution of dentists in this country.[6] The number of
Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. DCI is a dental clinics is more in urban areas and very less in rural areas.
statutory body incorporated under an act of parliament, viz., There is a tendency for the dentists to settle in metropolitan
the Dentists Act, 1948 (XVI of 1948). While DCI mainly deals cities. As reported by Tandon in 2004,[7] three-fourth of the total
with the dental education in India, the state dental councils, number of dentists was clustered in urban areas, which houses
constituted under section 21 of the Dentists Act, 1948, only one-fourth of the country’s population, and Chennai is
no exception. This could be attributed to the high investment
Access this article online toward the dental education and dental practice, relatively
Quick Response Code: increased paying capacity toward the dental treatment, and
Website: increased dental awareness among the general public.
www.jeed.in
The objective of the present study is to access the amount Did the dental clinic advertise by any means?
of violation of the code of conduct by the dental clinics with 5% dental clinics used visual media, 20% dental clinics used
respect to the clinic name board and advertisement, in and printed media, 1% dental clinics used both as means of
around Chennai, by an on-site survey. advertisement, whereas 74% dental clinics did not advertise
[Figure 5].
Materials and Methods
Discussion
The study was conducted among 1128 dental clinics in and
around Chennai. A single-blinded study was conducted and The privilege of being a dentist comes with a responsibility
data were collected by means of a personalized survey. to society and to fellow members of the profession to
conduct one’s professional activities in a highly ethical
The study consisted of questions regarding the size of the dental manner. [9] It is the duty of every dentist to follow ethics
clinic board, attractive symbols or wordings, qualifications when setting up a private practice, but it is common
other than the academic ones, and advertisements of the to see that some of the clinics do not follow them. The
clinics through media or sign boards [Table 1]. The results
Dentists regulations or Code of ethics was put forward in
were tabulated in a pie chart.
the year 1976.
Results
Table 1: Criterias used in the study
What was the size of the dental clinic board? 1. Whether the size of the sign board is
69% dental clinics had their board more than 3 × 2 feet and a. 3 × 2 feet
31% dental clinics had a size equal to 3 × 2 feet [Figure 1]. b. More than 3 × 2 feet
2. Whether the sign board contains symbols, attractive pictures or
wordings other than dentist name, registration no., and clinic
Were the clinic boards with attractive symbols/ address
pictures or wordings? Yes/No a. Yes
68% clinic boards had attractive symbols/pictures/wordings, b. No
while 32% clinics did not have the same [Figure 2]. 3. Whether any abbreviated words other than the academic
qualifications are present behind the dentist name
Did the dentists have abbreviations of degrees other a. Yes
than academic qualifications? Yes/No b. No
9% dentists had abbreviations other than the academic 4. Affixing a sign board on a Pharmacist’s shop or in places where
qualifications, whereas 91% of them did not have the the dentist does not reside or work
abbreviations [Figure 3]. a. Yes
b. No
Were the sign boards of the dental clinic present in 5. Whether the dentist is doing advertisement through
other places? a. Media
In 22% of the cases, the sign board was present in other places b. News magazine
and 78% clinics did not have their sign board in other places c. Both
[Figure 4]. d. None
31% 32%
69% 68%
Figure 1: Size of the sign board Figure 2: Sign board with attractive pictures/symbols/wordings
“Mentioning after the dentist’s name any other abbreviations The applicability of the laws and conformity of the society
except those indicating dental qualifications as earned by him to the laws can only be possible with a strict monitoring and
during his academic career in dentistry which conform to the penalties. In the area of dental care, dentists should conform
definition of ‘recognised dental qualification’ as defined in to the ethical rules. There is an obvious need for a committee
clause (j) of section 2 of the Act, or any other recognised academic within the chambers of dentists that will handle contentious
qualifications”.[10] Qualifications like M.I.D.A., M.I.C.D., situations, assess allegations received, and enforce the law by
F.C.I.P., F.A.C.D., and M.R.S.H. were the abbreviations imposing the required penalties.
observed following few practitioners’ names. The use of these
unrecognized academic qualifications is to show that they are Conclusion
more qualified in order to attract the patients.
This study concludes that ethics are not followed effectively by
Use of professional titles and degrees – The dentist shall use the dental practitioners in their clinical practice with respect
only the usual titles and academic degrees such as “Doctor,” to advertisements and name boards. The regulatory bodies like
“Dentist,” “B.D.S.,” “M.D.S.,” “Ph.D.,” in connection with the DCI and respective state dental councils should also consider
name or signature. about the revision/modification of certain code of ethics,
particularly with respect to the name board size, since it was
“Affixing a sign board on a chemist’s shop or in places where formed almost more than three decades back. Formation
the dentist does not reside or work”.[10] The study revealed of a proper ethical committee by the state dental councils is
few clinics were having their sign boards in other places, for warranted to monitor the practitioners and dental clinics.
instance, at a chemist’s shop or end of a lane. It is an indirect or
rapid form of advertising and or promoting their clinics since Acknowledgement
chemist shop is the place where the person in need of medical
attention gathers frequently. The first author would like to acknowledge Dr. S. Dhanarathna, Dr. S.
Preethi and post graduate students of Department of Oral Pathology
and Microbiology, Meenakshi Ammal Dental College and Hospital,
“Advertising, whether directly or indirectly, for the purpose
Chennai, India.
of obtaining patients or promoting his own professional
advantage”.[10] A few practitioners utilized printing media
for advertisement and a few used the visual media. Internet, References
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To solve this ethical dilemma in dentistry, it is mandatory How to cite this article: Sabarinath B, Sivapathasundharam B. Ethics
in dentistry. J Educ Ethics Dent 2011;1:24-7.
to have topic of “ethics” in the syllabus of undergraduate
Source of Support: Nil, Conflict of Interest: None declared
curriculum.[14]