This study identifies the key factors underlying the unmet dental care needs of South Korean homeless adults that obstructed their dental service access. We analysed data from 551 Korea Homeless Survey respondents (17 years and older) who reported having an oral disease in the previous 12 months. We conducted multiple logistic regression analyses to examine the factors associated with homeless individuals’ unmet dental care needs, using weights to make the data nationally representative. Approximately 43% of the homeless people reported having unmet dental care needs. Housing type (living in the street) was significantly associated with an increased odds ratio of unmet dental care needs. However, when social protection programs (housing benefits and Medical Aid [MA]) were included in the model, the statistical significance of the housing type disappeared. Homeless MA recipients were less likely to have unmet needs than those not covered by MA. On the other hand, homeless people who received housing benefits were more likely to receive dental care than people who do not receive these benefits. Consequently, policy makers should develop social protection programs influencing homeless individuals’ access to dental care and ensure the sustainable implementation of integrated community-based dental services for homeless adults.

中文翻译：

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韩国无家可归成年人未满足的牙科护理需求：一项全国调查的结果

这项研究确定了阻碍他们获得牙科服务的韩国无家可归成年人未得到满足的牙科护理需求的关键因素。我们分析了 551 名韩国无家可归者调查受访者（17 岁及以上）的数据，他们报告在过去 12 个月内患有口腔疾病。我们进行了多重逻辑回归分析，以检查与无家可归者未满足的牙科护理需求相关的因素，使用权重使数据具有全国代表性。大约 43% 的无家可归者报告其牙科护理需求未得到满足。住房类型（住在街上）与未满足的牙科护理需求的优势比显着相关。但是，当模型中包含社会保护计划（住房福利和医疗援助 [MA]）时，住房类型的统计意义消失了。与 MA 未涵盖的人相比，无家可归的 MA 接受者不太可能有未满足的需求。另一方面，获得住房福利的无家可归者比没有获得这些福利的人更有可能接受牙科护理。因此，政策制定者应制定影响无家可归者获得牙科护理的社会保护计划，并确保为无家可归的成年人可持续实施以社区为基础的综合牙科服务。