Assessment of Knowledge, Practice, and Confidence in Managing Medical Emergencies among Dentists in Libya: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Medical emergencies that may occur in a dental office are challenges for dentists that require proper knowledge and practical confidence to provide suitable management to save patients' lives. Although this is a critical point, several studies reveal a gap in the level of knowledge and confidence among dentists in dealing with medical emergencies. This study aims to assess the knowledge, practice, and confidence of dentists in Libya in identifying urgent clinical situations in dental offices and determine the differences in the levels of understanding and other related factors such as demographic differences and years of experience, etc. An anonymous online/paper questionnaire was distributed among Libyan dentists from different Libyan cities to evaluate dentists' knowledge, practice, and confidence in managing medical crises that may be encountered in dental practice. The Questionnaire involves three sections: structured questions, a demographic section, a scenario-based single best answer assessing knowledge of medical emergencies, and a Likert-scale questionnaire evaluating levels of confidence. A total of 92 questionnaires were received, representing a response rate of 96%. The largest proportion of participants was aged 36-45 years (50%), and females represented 64% of the sample. A total of 47.7% of participants had clinical experience of more than 10 years. The highest correct response was for the meaning of tachycardia (95.4%), while the lowest response rate was observed for the compression-to-ventilation ratio for adult CPR (60.5%). Although the most common medical emergency that may be encountered even in daily practice is syncope, this condition received only 63.2% correct responses. However, other responses revealed a moderate level of identifying the early signs and symptoms of some medical emergency situations. 37.9% of participants attended a first aid and life support training course. Regarding the availability of an emergency kit, 46.2% of participants reported "Yes" and 42.9% answered "No", while the rest were unaware of its availability. In addition, the findings of overall clinical confidence in managing different medical emergency cases revealed notable variability in preparedness between participants. Despite dentists showing sufficient theoretical awareness of diagnosis and identifying early signs and symptoms of medical emergencies, significant insufficiency appeared in clinical confidence and the management of high-risk scenarios. Enhancing training programs among dentists is required; additionally, emphasising the presence of an emergency kit in the dental clinic is necessary to improve self-confidence and safeguard patients' lives, which is our responsibility as dentists.