Level of Trust in Dental Health Care Service in Riyadh City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Objectives: Aim of this study was to determine the levels of trust in dental health care service in Riyadh City, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia & the elements affecting trust. Methods: The patients were interviewed while they were completing the questionnaires, to evaluate the clarity of the contents and to answer any relevant questions. The confidentiality of the patient was respected and anonymity is guaranteed. Results: Trust increased with increasing age of the survived person, female's total trust score was less compared to males and as the education level increased the level of trust score decreased. As the family income and social status increased the total trust increased. Trust score was higher in non-insured subjects compared to insured subjects and the people who are not suffering from long-term dental problems had higher trust level compared to ones with long-term dental problems. Conclusion: Extending and promoting the dental care in primary health institutions and appropriate referrals to advanced dental care centers will improve the trust of patients, improve utilization of resources & result in better dental care. The results of this study suggest that there is a need for further research to better understand and improve the trust of patients in dentists. Wider population-based study throughout the country may help to understand the effect of gender, age and education on patient's trust in the Saudi dental care system & can also assess the reliability of the results of this study.