Physicians' perceptions of the role of the dental hygienist in interprofessional collaboration: a pilot study

Attitudes toward and knowledge of collaboration of dental and medical practice among medical students in Southern India: a cross-sectional questionnaire survey

BACKGROUND

Enhancing oral health care services provided through inter-professional collaboration between medical and dental practitioner is important, and even essential. The purpose of this study is to assess the attitude toward and knowledge of medical-dental collaborative practice among medical students attending colleges in Southern India.

METHODS

A cross sectional questionnaire survey was conducted among medical students and interns of medical colleges in coastal South India with prior information and permission. The questionnaire consisted of 11 questions to assess attitude toward and knowledge of medical-dental collaborative practice. The demographic backgrounds of participants were also recorded. Chi square test was employed for data analysis. The responses obtained were correlated with age, gender and year of study of participants using Pearson's correlation test Results: A total 250 questionnaires were distributed and 234 responses were appropriately completed. Most of the students agreed that oral health was an integral part of systemic health, however participants disagreed on attending compulsory rotation in dentistry at a statistically significant level (p<0.05), moreover participants did not agree with physicians having an active role in motivating their patients for regular dental check-up. 82% of the medical students believe that dental check-up should be included in health packages under health insurance. A statistically significant (p<0.05) difference was observed among 3 rd year & 4 thyear students and interns and also it was found that female students provided more positive responses towards medical-dental collaboration.

CONCLUSIONS

Even though medical students showed fairly positive attitudes and knowledge towards dentistry, the analysis within the study groups showed that knowledge and attitudes regarding the collaborative practice worsened over the academic years among the medical students. In order to destigmatize and foster interdisciplinary collaboration which would contribute to higher resource efficiency and the standard of care, continuing education in both the disciplines would be highly beneficial.

The VOTIS, part 2: Using a video-reflexive assessment activity to foster dispositional learning in interprofessional education

Effective interprofessional collaborative practice (IPCP) requires a new way of working characterized by distributed leadership skills, shared decision-making, and the adoption of uniprofessional and interprofessional identities. Health professional educators are tasked with preparing clinicians for IPCP through interprofessional education (IPE). Numerous IPE teaching interventions have been developed, ranging in length from hours to semesters, designed to introduce students to interprofessional ways of working - usually evaluated in terms of student satisfaction, perceptions of other disciplines and conceptual knowledge. However, working interprofessionally also requires integrating dispositional knowledge into one's emerging interprofessional habits and values. In this paper, we describe a learning activity, inspired by a new video-reflexive methodology, designed to foster dispositional learning of interprofessional skills using a video-based assessment tool: the Video Observation Tool for Interprofessional Skills (VOTIS). Based on focus group and interview data, we suggest the activity's usefulness in fostering conceptual, procedural and dispositional knowledge, as well as reflexive feedback literacy. Overall, our qualitative evaluation of the VOTIS suggests the merits of drawing on video-reflexive methodology and pedagogical theory to re-imagine IPE as a dynamic process, requiring the development of interprofessional skills that must be appropriated into students' emerging (inter)professional identities.

Daily Tasks and Willingness to Work of Dental Hygienists in Nursing Facilities Using Japanese Dental Hygienists' Survey 2019

Oral health care by dental hygienists contributes to the maintenance of nutritional and general health for older people in nursing facilities. This study aimed to investigate daily tasks and willingness to work among dental hygienists working in nursing facilities in Japan. In 2019, using a self-administered questionnaire, a postal cross-sectional survey was conducted among members of the Japanese Dental Hygienists' Association. Questionnaires were distributed to all 16,722 Association members (responses, n = 8932; return rate, 53.4%). We analysed data from 368 dental hygienists currently working in nursing facilities. Item response theory and correspondence analyses were performed. In total, >90% of dental hygienists undertook oral examinations and provided oral hygiene instructions to residents and facility staff. In contrast, the implementation rate of tasks related to interprofessional collaboration was relatively low (approximately 50%), and 72.6% of dental hygienists indicated that they wanted to continue working in nursing facilities. Their willingness to work was closely associated with work involving interprofessional collaboration. Our study findings showed that dental hygienists' work content in nursing facilities was diverse, but that there was variation in implemented tasks. Willingness to continue working in nursing facilities was associated with interprofessional collaboration among dental hygienists.

Parent perceptions of dental care providers' role in human papillomavirus prevention and vaccine advocacy

BACKGROUND

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection and is responsible for most anogenital and oropharyngeal cancers. Dental care providers can be advocates for vaccine uptake, yet little is known about patients' perceptions of the role of dental care providers in HPV education and prevention.

METHODS

Parents of adolescents aged 9 through 17 years were recruited from the Minnesota State Fair to survey their awareness and knowledge of the HPV vaccine. Parents were also surveyed about their attitudes toward and comfort in receiving HPV vaccination recommendations and counseling from oral health care providers.

RESULTS

The authors interviewed 208 parents, most of whom felt that dentists were qualified to counsel about HPV (66.4%) and its vaccination (72.6%). A lower proportion felt similarly regarding dental hygienists. Parent age and sex were not correlated with comfort levels, but education levels (P = .021) and child vaccination statuses (P > .001) were.

CONCLUSIONS

Parents are comfortable having discussions about HPV and the vaccine in the dental setting, especially with dentists. This may represent an additional setting where strong recommendations increase vaccine uptake.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

Our findings emphasize an opportunity for the dental care team to improve the patient perspective on the role of dental care providers in HPV prevention. Continuing dental education can increase providers' knowledge, comfort, and confidence in discussing HPV with parents. Parents perceiving provider comfort and confidence might be more comfortable with HPV conversations. Training in collaborative, patient-focused communication techniques, such as motivational interviewing, can improve both providers' and patients' comfort and confidence in HPV counseling from oral health care providers.