Humanization in dental care: an integrative literature review

Abstract

Humanization in dental care is an indispensable theme to be worked on in the training and service provision of dental surgeons, aiming at a truly comprehensive care that transcends the technical methodology and fully embraces the physiological, psychological, emotional, cultural and social aspects of the human being. Objective: The objective of the present study was to evaluate current studies in the literature on the effect of the presence of humanization during dental care to patients. Methodology: This is an integrative literature review, supported by a systematically careful analysis of scientific articles published from the years 2002 to 2025, selected in the VHL and SciELO databases, here specific descriptors such  as 'Humanization of care AND Dentistry', 'Humanization AND Dentistry' and 'Humanization AND Dentistry' were used. Results: The results showed that a total of fifty (n=50) academic papers were produced from the applied research, one (n=1) of which was filtered and chosen in the VHL databases, and one more (n=1) in Scielo, these revealed that despite some advances in the insertion and implementation of humanistic approaches, they are quite limited, such as in academic texts and in the clinical environment.  dentistry still faces several difficulties in the consolidation of such methods, especially in the Unified Health System (SUS), due to the high demands of patients as well as some configurations and structural restrictions. Discussion: The discussion brings to the light of scientific evidence the urgent need for curricular changes in undergraduate courses in dentistry, and for this, it arouses interest in the manifestation of the development of communicative, solidary and behavioral skills in order to improve the true bond between professional and patient. Conclusion: It is concluded that humanization is a determining principle for the quality of dental care, and it is essential to continue training professionals in order to promote an increasingly welcoming, comprehensive and genuinely effective care.