Vlaho Brailo1, Francis John Firriolo2, Takako Imai Tanaka3, Elena Varoni4, Rosemary Sykes5, Michael McCullough6, Hong Hua7, Alexandra Sklavounou8, Siri Beier Jensen9, Peter B Lockhart10, Ulf Mattsson11, Mats Jontell12. 1. Department of Oral Medicine, School of Dental Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia. Electronic address: brailo@sfzg.hr. 2. Division of Oral Medicine, School of Dentistry, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA. 3. Department of Biomedical and Diagnostic Sciences, University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry, Detroit, MI, USA. 4. Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Chirurgiche ed Odontoiatriche, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, Italy. 5. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department, Nottingham University Hospitals, Nottingham, UK. 6. Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia. 7. Department of Oral Medicine, School of Stomatology, Peking University, Peking, China. 8. Department of Oral Pathology and Medicine, Dental School, University of Athens, Athens, Greece. 9. Section of Oral Medicine, Clinical Oral Physiology, Oral Pathology and Anatomy, Faculty Of Health and Medical Sciences University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. 10. Department of Oral Medicine, Carolinas Medical Center, Charlotte, NC, USA. 11. Clinic of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Central Hospital, Karlstad, Sweden. 12. Institute of Odontology, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To assess the current scope and status of Oral Medicine-specific software (OMSS) utilized to support clinical care, research, and education in Oral Medicine and to propose a strategy for broader implementation of OMSS within the global Oral Medicine community. STUDY DESIGN: An invitation letter explaining the objectives was sent to the global Oral Medicine community. Respondents were interviewed to obtain information about different aspects of OMSS functionality. RESULTS: Ten OMSS tools were identified. Four were being used for clinical care, one was being used for research, two were being used for education, and three were multipurpose. Clinical software was being utilized as databases developed to integrate of different type of clinical information. Research software was designed to facilitate multicenter research. Educational software represented interactive, case-orientated technology designed for clinical training in Oral Medicine. Easy access to patient data was the most commonly reported advantage. Difficulty of use and poor integration with other software was the most commonly reported disadvantage. CONCLUSIONS: The OMSS presented in this paper demonstrate how information technology (IT) can have an impact on the quality of patient care, research, and education in the field of Oral Medicine. A strategy for broader implementation of OMSS is proposed.
OBJECTIVES: To assess the current scope and status of Oral Medicine-specific software (OMSS) utilized to support clinical care, research, and education in Oral Medicine and to propose a strategy for broader implementation of OMSS within the global Oral Medicine community. STUDY DESIGN: An invitation letter explaining the objectives was sent to the global Oral Medicine community. Respondents were interviewed to obtain information about different aspects of OMSS functionality. RESULTS: Ten OMSS tools were identified. Four were being used for clinical care, one was being used for research, two were being used for education, and three were multipurpose. Clinical software was being utilized as databases developed to integrate of different type of clinical information. Research software was designed to facilitate multicenter research. Educational software represented interactive, case-orientated technology designed for clinical training in Oral Medicine. Easy access to patient data was the most commonly reported advantage. Difficulty of use and poor integration with other software was the most commonly reported disadvantage. CONCLUSIONS: The OMSS presented in this paper demonstrate how information technology (IT) can have an impact on the quality of patient care, research, and education in the field of Oral Medicine. A strategy for broader implementation of OMSS is proposed.