173 - Reducing Pediatric Oral Sedation Appointment Failures

Abstract:

Purpose:
Oral conscious sedation (OCS) appointments in pediatric dentistry frequently fail due to no-shows, same-day cancellations, and non-start sedations related to preventable readiness issues such as noncompliance with fasting instructions, illness, or guardian requirements. These failures reduce clinic efficiency, delay dental care, and increase the burden on families, staff, and training programs. This quality improvement project aims to reduce preventable OCS appointment failures through the implementation of a standardized Sedation Readiness Bundle.

Methods:
This prospective pre–post quality improvement initiative was conducted in a university-based pediatric dental clinic. All pediatric patients scheduled for OCS during baseline and intervention periods will be included. The intervention consisted of a Sedation Readiness Bundle, which contained a standardized 48 -72-hour pre-sedation confirmation call with a checklist, caregiver teach-back of fasting and arrival instructions, and a day-of go/no-go checklist completed before sedation dosing. Data were collected from existing scheduling and electronic health record documentation. Weekly run charts were used to monitor trends during the intervention period. The primary outcome measure was the OCS appointment failure rate, defined as no-show, same-day cancellation, or non-start sedation. Secondary outcomes included individual failure categories and process compliance rates.

Results:
This project is ongoing.Implementation of the Sedation Readiness Bundle is expected to reduce OCS failure rates and non-start sedations. High compliance with bundle elements (≥90%) is expected.

Conclusions:
This project is anticipated to demonstrate that a standardized sedation readiness process can improve appointment reliability, optimize clinic utilization, and support timely delivery of pediatric dental care while enhancing resident sedation training experiences.



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