DHS Annual Report 2004/05 - Dental Outcomes

The Department of Human Services recently published its Annual Report for 2004/05, containing a number of dental references - notably on pages 15, 17, 58 and 116.

The summary of major "outputs" and "deliverables" appears on page 116, and includes the following key points:

• There were a total of 785,938 dental service units provided within the community, school, preschool and specialist service areas
• the ratio of emergency to general treatment was 55:45 (above the budgetted target of 49:51)
• the waiting time for restorative dental care as at 30 June was 28 months (compared with a target of 22 months)
• the waiting time for dentures was 28 months (compared with a target of 24 months)
• the total output cost for dental services (as distinct from system development and resourcing) was $104.4m for the 2004/05 year