OBJECTIVES: We investigated the perspectives of people using a wheelchair and their difficulties in accessing dental services.METHODS: Our participatory research was on the basis of a partnership between people using a wheelchair, dental professionals, and academic researchers. Partners were involved in a committee that provided advice at all stages of the project. Our team adopted a qualitative descriptive design. Between October 2011 and October 2012 we conducted semistructured individual interviews with 13 adults who lived in Montreal, Qu?bec, Canada, and used a wheelchair full time. We audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim interviews, and we interpreted data using an inductive thematic analysis.RESULTS: Oral health is of heightened importance to this group of people, who tend to use their mouth as a "third hand." We identified successive challenges in accessing dental services: finding a dentist and being accepted, organizing transportation, entering the building and circulating inside, interacting with the dental staff, transferring and overcoming discomfort on the dental chair, and paying for the treatments.CONCLUSIONS: Governments, dental professional bodies, dental schools, and researchers should work with groups representing wheelchair users to improve access to dental services.
Adolescent Adult