Assessing Oral Health Literacy and Information Seeking Behavior of Patients in Clinics and Private Offices of Dentistry in Tabriz

Abstract

Abstract Introduction: Health literacy is the key to empower individuals and acts as a tool against inequalities in health and to improve knowledge and skills of community members. Low health literacy is considered as a barrier to benefit from health information and consequently will lead to low performance in the context of oral health. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine information needs of dentistry patients, used sources and determining social factors effective on oral health, oral health literacy, and health seeking behavior. Material and methods: this was a cross-sectional study. A total number of 600 were selected as sample size among patients who referred to dental clinics and private offices in Tabriz. A researcher-made questionnaire was distributed among them. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square test. Results: The results showed that the sources which are used by patients to receive health information are mainly focused on dentists and Internet. Also, patients had low awareness on patient’s bill rights. The level of education is playing as an effective factor on the awareness of individuals towards oral health. Conclusion: Encouraging individuals to pursue higher levels of education and dedicating time to explain treatment procedures to increase the awareness of patients is recommended.