Health & Disability Intelligence

2008 New Zealand Oral Health Survey

The initial pilot is underway for the 2008 New Zealand Oral Health Survey. The New Zealand Oral Health Survey will gather information on the oral health status, beliefs, attitudes, knowledge and practices of children, adults and older adults in New Zealand. The survey has two parts a face-to-face interview and an oral health examination. The face to face interview will be carried out by trained interviewers. Qualified and NZ Registered dentists (or for some children - dental therapists) will be undertaking the simple dental examinations.

The sample will be approximately 6,000 adults and 2,400 children (under 14 years old).

Download the Oral Health Survey pamphlet (PDF, 167 KB)

New Zealand Oral Health Survey Q & A for survey participants

What is the New Zealand Oral Health Survey?

The New Zealand Oral Health Survey collects information about the oral health of New Zealanders and the oral health services they use. ‘Oral health’ means the health of your teeth, gums and mouth. Surveys like this were conducted in 1976 and 1988. The New Zealand Oral Health Survey has two parts: an interview and a simple dental examination. Better information about the oral health of New Zealand people is gained if people complete both parts of the survey. About 6000 adults and 2400 children will take part in this survey over the next 12 months.

Who is carrying out the survey?

A company called CBG Health Research Ltd. has been contracted by the Ministry of Health to do the interviewing for this New Zealand Oral Health Survey. Registered dentists or dental therapists will do the simple dental examinations free of charge.

Note: The dental survey examinations are not as complete as a check-up at the dentist and can only be completed on adults or children who are part of the survey. It is not possible to make changes to the examination or have follow up appointments with the survey dentists.

Why was I asked to Participate?

You recently took part in the New Zealand Health Survey where you were interviewed in your home. At this time you kindly agreed to be re-contacted within the next two years about the possibility of answering other questions of importance to the Ministry of Health. The adult in the household who took part in the New Zealand Health Survey will be invited to take part in the New Zealand Oral Health Survey. If a child in the household also took part in the New Zealand Health Survey, the parent or caregiver of this child will be invited to answer for the child in the New Zealand Oral Health Survey. Children aged 9 to 14 years can answer selected questions for themselves if they wish and with the parent or caregiver’s permission. Your experiences are important to the Ministry of Health. Information is needed from people who have good teeth, from people who have problems with their teeth and from people who have lost all of their teeth. This helps the Ministry to get a clear picture of the oral health of all people living in New Zealand.

What Questions Will be Asked?

The New Zealand Oral Health Survey collects information about:

• problems that people can have with their teeth and mouth and how people’s teeth look and work
• how people use oral health services
• factors that contribute to oral health.

Some examples of questions in the New Zealand Oral Health
Survey are:

• How often do you brush your teeth?
• How would you describe the health of your teeth and mouth: excellent, very good, good, fair or poor?
• What was the main reason you last visited a dentist?

You can tell the interviewer if you don’t want to answer a question.
At the end of the interview, the interviewer will ask if you would like to take part in the simple dental examination. The interviewer will also ask the parent or caregiver of the child if the child can take part in the simple dental examination. If you do agree to take part, the examination will be arranged for a few days after the interview at a date and time to suit you and your family.

The dental information collected in the Oral Health Survey is designed to measure levels of dental health such as dental decay and gum disease. This information is then used to get an overall indication of the oral health of New Zealand people.

Therefore the dental examinations for the oral health survey are not the same as a dentist would do in order to plan dental treatment. That is, the examinations for this survey will not be as extensive as a normal dental examination would be. The examination should not hurt, no x-rays will be taken and no dental treatment or medications will be provided. The examination will usually be done at a dental facility such as a private dental
practice, but if this is not possible the examination can be done in your home.

The dental survey examinations will be done free of charge by qualified, registered dentists who are especially employed to do these for the Oral Health Survey. For children, the examinations will also be free of charge and will be done by qualified and registered dentists or dental therapists. The dentist or dental therapist will explain about the examination first and you can tell the dental professional if you decide not to have the examination.

During the dental survey examination, the dentist or dental therapist will count the number of teeth you or your child has and record the condition of those teeth. For adults, the health of your gums, and information about
damaged teeth and any false teeth you may have will also be recorded. Photographs of your or your child’s teeth will be taken if you agree. These photographs will enable dental researchers to make further assessments about people’s teeth after the examination has finished. Nobody will be able to recognise you or your child from the photographs.

What will the information be used for?

The Ministry of Health uses the information from the
New Zealand Oral Health Survey to:

• assess the oral health of the population
• monitor the use of oral health services
• develop oral health policies, programmes and services that better meet the needs of New Zealanders
• conduct additional oral health research.

Health researchers outside of the Ministry of Health can apply to use New Zealand Oral Health Survey data. This data will not contain any information that could identify you (in accordance with the Health Act 1956, clause 22H).

How is my privacy protected?

The information you provide to the interviewer is confidential and protected by the Privacy Act 1993. That means that the interviewer will not discuss your information with anyone else, and no-one will be able to know that you have taken part in this survey. The answers you give are added to other people’s answers to create group statistics. Any personal information will not be given to other government departments or researchers.

How long will it take?

The adult interview will take about half an hour and the child interview about 20 minutes. This can be done at a date and time that suits you and your family. The simple dental examination will take about half an hour for an adult and about 20 minutes for a child.

Where can I find the survey results?

The Ministry of Health will publish the New Zealand Oral Health Survey results on its website at the end of 2009. You will be able a free copy from the website www.moh.govt.nz/phi/publications or by phoning (04) 496 2277.

Further Enquiries

For more information on the New Zealand Oral Health Survey
please phone CBG Health Research Ltd on 0800 478 783,
or 0800 4 SURVEY
or email phi@moh.govt.nz if you have any questions.


The New Zealand Oral Health Survey has been approved by the Multi-region Health Research Ethics Committee and is managed by Health & Disability Intelligence, Ministry of Health, www.moh.govt.nz/phi, phi@moh.govt.nz.

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Related Information

www.moh.govt.nz/oralhealth

Oral Health Targets


Page last updated: 25 March 2008