Oral Health and Dental Management

Trust and distrust mechanisms in the dental care sector: A two-factor typology of governance

2^nd International Conference and Exhibition on Dental & Oral Health

April 21-23, 2014 Crown Plaza Dubai, UAE

Martin Spraggon and Virginia Bodolica

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: Oral Health Dent Manag

Abstract:

This article examines different attributes of monitoring the interaction between patients and dentistsfor securing optimal oral health results and higher patients? satisfaction. We adopt an interdisciplinary approach to conceptualize a two-factor typology of governance in patient-dentist interactions. The assumption made in our study is that both trust- and distrust-based attributes can operate as governance mechanisms for alleviating information asymmetries and conflicts of interest between the key stakeholders involved in the medical encounter. Trust-based governance is associated with dentists? expertise, morality and professionalintegrity, whereas distrust-based governance is driven by patients? dental literacy, decision-making involvement, and information empowerment. We offer a typology for governing patient-dentist interactions, including the dentist-driven, patient-driven, marginal, and optimal governance. The advanced typology suggests that the optimal governance of patientdentist encounters should rely on a high trust?distrust combination, which permits the simultaneousexercise of dentists? professional autonomy and the respect for patients? right to self-determination. An important priority for policy makers should be the formulation of practical initiatives for reducing patients? skepticism in dental professionals, developing awareness regarding the risks of dentists? absolute withdrawal from decision making, and encouraging patients to play a more active role in issues affecting their oral health.

Biography :

Martin Spraggon is an Associate Professor at the American University of Sharjah and a Visiting Faculty at the ESE Business School, Universidad de los Andes. He lectures on topics in strategic management, international marketing, and organizational behavior and is actively involved in Executive Education Programs. He has an extensive international experience having performed consulting projects for North American, Western European, Latin American and Middle Eastern organizations. He conducts research on knowledge and innovation, executive compensation, andgovernance in healthcare markets that has been published in Strategic Management Journal, Academy of Management Annals, Strategic Organization, Journal of Business Research, Health Expectations, and Journal of Business Ethics.