Involving the 'consumer' in the evaluation of dental care: a philosophy in search of data.

Recent initiatives by the government of the United Kingdom have led to an increasing interest in patient and public participation in the evaluation and design of healthcare. (1,2) To date this has largely concentrated on the identification of the views of service users of both the treatment they have received, and of what could be called the structural dimensions of service provision, for example ease of access, waiting times, availability of treatment facilities, priorities in care and so on. (3,4) In this article I shall explore three broad questions: Who counts as a 'consumer' and what do we want to know from them? How do we go about ascertaining their views? How do we use information on the views of consumers in planning services and providing care?