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Asiri FYI, Tennant M, Kruger E. Bridging the Gap: Dental Students' Attitudes toward Persons with Disabilities (PWDs). Healthcare (Basel) 2024; 12:1386. [PMID: 39057529 PMCID: PMC11275258 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare12141386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2024] [Revised: 07/07/2024] [Accepted: 07/10/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Persons with disabilities (PWDs) face significant barriers in accessing dental care, resulting in poorer oral health outcomes compared to the general population. To reduce dental healthcare disparities, dental professionals must develop positive attitudes and acquire the necessary skills to treat PWDs effectively. This study aimed to assess the experiences, education, training levels, and attitudes of dental students and interns toward PWDs, and to explore the relationships between their exposure to PWDs, their education/training regarding managing PWDs, and their attitudes toward PWDs. METHODS Participants were recruited using convenience sampling. From May to June 2023, a pretested, validated online questionnaire (developed based on existing survey instruments and modified to fit the study context) was distributed to 98 eligible dental students and interns at King Faisal University. Descriptive and analytical statistics were used for analysis. RESULTS The response rate was 88.78%. There was a statistically positive correlation between students' exposure to PWDs and their attitudes (p < 0.05). Statistically significant relationships were found between students' education/training and their attitudes towards educational experiences and instructors (p < 0.01) and interpersonal interactions with PWDs (p < 0.05). No statistically significant relationship existed between the year of study and future encounters with PWDs (p = 0.176). Additionally, 42.5% of students felt inadequately prepared to treat PWDs, and 88.5% expressed a desire for further education. Notably, 20.7% reported no training on PWDs, while 70.1% preferred clinical education. CONCLUSIONS The study underscores the importance of exposure and training in shaping dental students' attitudes toward PWDs. Dental schools should prioritize structured teaching, greater contact with the disabled community, and hands-on experiences to ensure dental professionals are both well prepared and positively inclined to treat PWDs. These findings have significant implications for improving dental education curricula.
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Affiliation(s)
- Faris Yahya I. Asiri
- Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa 31982, Saudi Arabia
- International Research Collaboration—Oral Health and Equity, School of Allied Health, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia; (M.T.); (E.K.)
| | - Marc Tennant
- International Research Collaboration—Oral Health and Equity, School of Allied Health, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia; (M.T.); (E.K.)
| | - Estie Kruger
- International Research Collaboration—Oral Health and Equity, School of Allied Health, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia; (M.T.); (E.K.)
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Scepanovic T, Mati S, Ming ALC, Yeo PYS, Nguyen D, Aria M, D'aniello L, Fung D, Muriithi E, Mamgain A, Zihao W, Zeng JH, Nichols A, McCullough M, Lim MAW, Wylie M, Yap T, Paolini R, Celentano A. The global distribution of special needs dentistry across dental school curricula. SPECIAL CARE IN DENTISTRY 2024; 44:1191-1210. [PMID: 38385902 DOI: 10.1111/scd.12973] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Revised: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 01/28/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Special needs dentistry (SND) is an emerging dental specialty, with ongoing developments in education and clinical practice focused towards the tailored management of individuals with special needs (SN). Patients with SN have a higher prevalence of oral diseases and unmet dental needs compared to the general population. Although inadequate training and experience in managing patients with SN has been highlighted as a significant barrier to accessing care, there is limited data about the extent of SND teaching at the entry-to-practice or higher levels. METHODS This work is the first to map SND curricula globally, across 180 countries and 1265 dental schools. RESULTS Although 74.62% of dental schools were found in developing economies, the distribution of programs that reported SND in their courses was highly skewed towards developed countries. In terms of advanced degrees, beyond basic entry-to-practice training, the USA delivered 60% of the SND programs, followed by Canada (15.56%), UK (13.33%), and Australia (8.89%). The term SND appeared in 33.95% of entry-to-practice level program curricula and was less commonly used in transitioning economies. Only 112 SND-specialized practitioners enter the workforce globally each year from developed economies, and all but three advanced degrees are found in G7 countries. CONCLUSION By exploring the impact of economic status on its distribution, this paper highlighted the lack of SND representation in dental curricula, especially amongst programs in transitioning or developing economies. Education of both general dentists and specialists is critical as a collaborative effort is needed to manage the growing population of patients with SN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamara Scepanovic
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Sarah Mati
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Anna L C Ming
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Priscilla Y S Yeo
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - David Nguyen
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Massimo Aria
- Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Luca D'aniello
- Department of Social Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Desmond Fung
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Elizabeth Muriithi
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Asha Mamgain
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Wu Zihao
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Jin Han Zeng
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Andrew Nichols
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Michael McCullough
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Mathew A W Lim
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Michael Wylie
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Tami Yap
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Rita Paolini
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Antonio Celentano
- Melbourne Dental School, The University of Melbourne, Carlton, Victoria, Australia
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