LAUSR

BACKGROUND Little is known about factors influencing children's access to and use of oral health care in the Galapagos Islands, a resource-limited setting. AIM We sought to understand caregivers' experiences and factors influencing their children's use of dental services on San Cristobal Island in the Galapagos Archipelago. DESIGN A community-based qualitative interview study was carried out among 25 caregivers of children ages 6 months to 10 years old. Participants were recruited via a random walk door-to-door approach in 10 neighborhoods and interviews were done by a trained research assistant local to the Galapagos. We employed a grounded theory-based qualitative data analysis based on inductive coding to identify and report major emerging themes and illustrative participant quotes. RESULTS Two major themes emerged related to children's oral health care. Participants expressed their preference for care provided by pediatric and versus general dentists and recognized the important role of school-based dental care programs, acknowledging their strengths and weaknesses. CONCLUSIONS Participants' lived experiences were informative and helped improve our understanding of factors influencing children's use of dental services in the Galapagos. Above and beyond their local relevance, these themes and insights are likely applicable to other global communities that experience similar barriers of access to oral health care services.