Célia Carneiro

Advances in dental medicine have led in the western world to an increase in life expectancy average. resulting in a significant increase in the number of people in need of health care.

Communication in health can be defined as “the use of communication strategies to inform and influence the decisions of individuals and communities in order to promote health”.

Health communication aims, among others, the promotion and education on health, preventing diseases, recommending behavior change, encouraging screening and diagnostic tests and informing about primary healthcare measures for healthy or sick individuals. For this transmission of information, the relationship established with the health professional is crucial.

Effective communication leads to the early detection of certain pathologies and, when there is an adequate transmission to the needs of each user, it contributes to increase satisfaction, adherence to treatment plans and reduction of anxiety levels, even if the information transmitted is related to a bad prognosis. The approach must therefore follow the path of personalizing the information.

Speaker of the session “On the Agenda” with the title “Communication and literacy in dental medicine: is what the patient hears, what the dentist says”.