| Summary: | Summary: These studies examine how patients are prioritized in the health service in Norway, focusing on how dental health differs other branches of health care. Priorities in dental clinics are compared with those in the other Nordic countries. The Goal: To provide an overview and understanding of the organisation and prioritizing in the public health and dental services in Norway. Method: Review of the literature. Conclusion: The health service in Norway prioritizes patients by severity of disease, the benefit treatment may provide and the cost-effectiveness of treatment. Teeth are not part of general health care for several reasons: the history and decisions taken at the beginning of the 20th century, the nature of dental diseases and the fact that there has been no political agenda. Dental disease affects everyone but is largely a consequence of health behaviour, so prevention is particularly important. Dental services in the Nordic countries have many common features in their organization, including provision of free or virtually free care for all children. Which groups receive publicly provided care apart from children varies from country to country. Norway and Iceland are the only Nordic countries that do not have general support for adult dental health.
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