DYNAMICS OF SOME INDICATORS OF THE PROVISION OF DENTAL AID TO THE POPULATION OF DONETSK REGION IN THE PRE-WAR YEARS

Abstract

The reformation of the dental care system, together with factors of a socio-economic and pandemic nature, significantly affected the level of its accessibility for the population. The purpose of the study. Comparative analysis of the number of dentists and indicators of visits to health care institutions in the country and in the Donetsk region for the pre-war years 2018-2021. Materials and methods of research. Based on the information from the reports of health care institutions of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, an analysis of indicators related to the number of dentists in the country and Donetsk region, as well as the number of visits to dentists in 2018– 2021, was conducted. The results. In 2018, in Ukraine, 16,852 dentists conducted appointments in health care institutions under the Ministry of Health, of which 1,673 pediatric dentists (9.9%), in 2021 there were 11,380 dentists and 1 331 pediatric dentists, that is, compared to 2018, their number decreased by 32.4% and 20.4%, respectively. In 2018, there were 610 dentists in the institutions of the Donetsk region, in 2021 the number decreased to 501 dentists, the decrease was 17.9%. In 2018, 60 pediatric dentists worked in the region (9.8%), in 2021, their number remained the same. Compared to 2018, the number of visits of the country's population to dentists in 2021 decreased by 62.7%, adults – by 61.9%, children – by 64.6%, in the Donetsk region the indicators decreased, respectively, by 47.9%, 54.9% and 54.8%. Conclusions. In the health care institutions under the Ministry of Health, in the country and in the Donetsk region, during the pre-war years 2018–2021, there was a significant decrease in the number of dentists, including pediatric dentists, with the exception of those who worked in the institutions of the Donetsk region. Quantitative indicators of visits to dentists of the entire population, adults and children have also decreased significantly, which can be attributed to both socio-economic factors and the processes of reforming the dental care system.