Patient-Centered Dental Home: Clearinghouse of Existing Oral Health Quality Indicators


Dental plan members' experience with getting an appointment with a dental specialist

Characteristics
ACCESSIBLE

Component
Timely

Measure Concept
Timely access for specialist care [SYSTEM-LEVEL ONLY]

Descriptions
This measure assesses the percentage of adult dental plan patients who indicated how often ("Never," "Sometimes," "Usually," or "Always") they were able to get a dental appointment with a dental specialist as soon as they wanted. Numerator: The number of "Never," "Sometimes," "Usually," or "Always" responses to the question "If you tried to get an appointment for yourself with a dentist who specializes in a particular type of dental care (such as root canals or gum disease) in the last 12 months, how often did you get an appointment as soon as you wanted?" Denominator: Number of dental plan patients age 18 years and older who answered the question on the CAHPS Dental Plan Survey.

Measure or Standard
Measure

Populations
Adults

Level of Measure
Program/Plan

Data Source
Survey

Measure Identification
AHRQ/CAHPS

Developer/Steward
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)

Stage of Development/Use
AHRQ/CAHPS

Measure Endorsement