Journal of Korean Society of Dental Hygiene (J Korean Soc Dent Hyg)
Original Article

Infection control status by organizational scale of specialized dental institutions in a metropolitan area

1SUN Life Science Co., Ltd.
2Department of Dental Hygiene, Yuhan University

Correspondence to Jung-Min Han, SUN Life Science Co., Ltd., SUN M Tower, 1208 Gyeongui-ro, Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea. Department of Dental Hygiene, Yuhan University, 590, Gyeongin-ro, Bucheon-si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea. E-mail: wbjmf9220080@gmail.com

Volume 26, Number 4, Pages 491–500, August 2026.
J Korean Soc Dent Hyg 2026;26(4):491–500. https://doi.org/10.13065/jksdh.2026.26.4.8
Received on May 26, 2026, Revised on June 18, 2026, Accepted on July 24, 2026, Published on August 30, 2026.
Copyright © 2026 Journal of Korean Society of Dental Hygiene.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0).

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to investigate infection control practices according to the organizational scale of specialized dental institutions. Methods: Dental institutions across a metropolitan area were recruited from February 1 to February 25, 2026, using a convenience sample. Items were analyzed using the chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, and analysis of variance. Results: The mean scores by domain ranged from 78.9 (medical waste and laundry management) to a low of 41.2 (personnel and education). Across all domains, the multidisciplinary collaboration model consistently demonstrated significantly superior performance compared to other organizational types (p<0.05). The availability of personal protective equipment (PPE) and compliance with sterilization procedures were both high (96.7%). However, there were significant differences across organizational size regarding hand hygiene, PPE use, sterilization effectiveness verification (biological and chemical indicators), backflow prevention devices, water quality testing and monitoring, and infection control staffing and training (p<0.01). Conclusions: Single-specialty model institutions should be guided to adhere to standard manuals. Furthermore, policies that encourage voluntary participation, such as institutional fee guarantees for sterilization validation and infection control, are required.
Keywords

Dental infection control, Dental institution, Organization scale of dental specialty departments

서론

이하 퍼블리싱 중.

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