Dentists frequently find themselves struggling to manage a child’s behaviour as they attempt to provide needed dental care. A recent survey conducted that included kids dentists from over 200 offices throughout the US revealed that a large number of kids enter the dental office already in a state of fear and locked into a mode of non compliance. As a result, a declining number of dentists are willing to work with children.
Kids that are difficult to work with are often referred to a kids dentist for treatment. In many states, the kids dentist report being overwhelmed with the number of difficult children they are being asked to handle. Working with children who are not cooperative is not easy for the kids dentist or general dental practitioner.
The children’s dental offices handle noncompliant kids in a wide variety of ways. In some offices, the kids were physically carried to a room and strapped to a papoose board while necessary dentistry was performed. Other dental offices reflected a calmer environment. The kids dentist talked to the children explaining every procedure and tool using silly and weird names for the dental equipment.
