Orthodontic outreach clinics — no marked advantages or disadvantages: For patients requiring orthodontic treatment are outreach clinics an effective way of delivering services?

Design Single centre randomised controlled trial.Intervention Allocation of referred patients to outreach or main base consultation appointments. Outcome measure The outcome of consultation, the cost and duration of the visit and the carer/patient’s perceptions of the visit. Results There were no differences in outcome of the consultation. While consumer travel costs and the duration of appointments were significantly higher for the main base clinics, these differences were not great. However, consumers preferred to attend an appointment in an outreach clinic. Conclusions There do not appear to be marked advantages or disadvantages in providing consultation appointments for orthodontics in outreach clinics. © EBD 2004.