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Altan H, Gönder HY, Demirel E, Altan A, Tunçdemir AR, Zahra D, Al Maweri SA, Ali K. Readiness for clinical practice: Self-perceived confidence of final year dental students in Turkey - A multi-institutional study. MEDEDPUBLISH 2024; 14:9. [PMID: 39118866 PMCID: PMC11306955 DOI: 10.12688/mep.20115.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 08/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction The primary aim of undergraduate dental education is to prepare dental students for independent dental practice and to enable them to provide safe and effective dental care. This study aimed to investigate the self-perceived preparedness of senior dental undergraduate students in Turkey. Methods Purposive sampling was used to recruit final-year dental students from 10 dental institutions offering undergraduate dental programs in Turkey. Student preparedness was assessed using a previously validated dental preparedness assessment scale based on 50 items encompassing core clinical skills, cognitive attributes, and behavioral skills. The research instrument was then translated into Turkish. The R statistical environment for Windows was used for the data analysis. Results Responses were provided by 272 students (156 women and 116 men; 57% and 43%, respectively) across 10 different universities. The mean score of the participants was 75.68 with slightly higher scores for men compared to women (77.35 vs. 74.46 respectively). However, independent t-tests showed that the scores did not differ significantly between women and men. Conclusions This study evaluated the self-perceived preparedness for dental practice of final-year students from 10 universities in Turkey. Although the results showed several areas of weakness, the scores of self-perceived preparedness of Turkish students were comparable to those reported in Europe and Asia. These findings can be used to inform future curriculum development to support students in consolidating their learning in perceived areas of weakness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Halenur Altan
- Pediatric Dentistry Department, Faculty of Dentistry, Necmettin Erbakan University, Meram, Konya, Turkey
| | - Hakan Yasin Gönder
- Restorative Dentistry Department, Faculty of Dentistry, Necmettin Erbakan University, Meram, Konya, Turkey
| | - Elif Demirel
- Pediatric Dentistry Department, Faculty of Dentistry, Necmettin Erbakan University, Meram, Konya, Turkey
| | - Ahmet Altan
- Maxillofacial Surgery Department, Faculty of Dentistry, Necmettin Erbakan University, Meram, Konya, Turkey
| | - Ali Rıza Tunçdemir
- Prosthdontics Department, Faculty of Dentistry, Necmettin Erbakan University, Meram, Konya, Turkey
| | - Daniel Zahra
- School of Psychology, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, England, PL4 8AA, UK
| | | | - Kamran Ali
- College of Dental Medicine, Qatar University, Doha, Doha, 2713, Qatar
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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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Javed MQ, Abulhamael AM, Ahmad Z, Muhammad M, Faridi MA, Khan KI, Habib SR, Ali K. Self-reported preparedness of final year undergraduate dental students and interns in Saudi Arabia: a multi-institutional study. BMC MEDICAL EDUCATION 2024; 24:282. [PMID: 38481299 PMCID: PMC10938702 DOI: 10.1186/s12909-024-05246-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Contemporary undergraduate dental education aims to equip the dental students with clinical competence, empathy, and professionalism to enable them to deliver safe and effective dental care to the communities. The purpose of this study was to assess the self-reported preparedness of final year dental students and interns at three Saudi dental institutions, using the pre-validated Dental Undergraduates Preparedness Assessment Scale (DU-PAS). METHODS A cross-sectional study design was employed to assess the self-reported preparedness of the participants using the DU-PAS. Following ethics approval, a probability sampling technique was used to recruit undergraduate dental students and interns from three dental institutions in Saudi Arabia. The data was collected online on Google Forms and all participants provided their consent to participate in the study prior to providing their responses to DU-PAS. RESULTS Responses were received from 397 participants including 171 males and 226 females yielding a response rate of 60.3%. The total mean score of the participants was 81.85 ± 13.11. Although higher scores were reported in males, the interaction between gender and DU-PAS scores were not significant. Interaction between DU-PAS scores and stage of education showed significant effect of the stage of education with interns reporting higher overall scores. The participants reported that they were able to perform most clinical procedures independently. However, low confidence was reported in performing multi-rooted endodontics, fabrication of removable dentures and orthodontic assessment. The participants also expressed their confidence in a wide range of behavioural attributes related to communication, teamworking and professionalism. However, lack of experience was noted in referral for oral cancer, interpreting research, and evaluation of new dental products using an evidence-based approach. CONCLUSION The study provides useful insights into the self-reported preparedness of undergraduate dental students and interns in three dental institutions. While the overall preparedness of the participants was comparable to their international peers, the findings underscore the need for further enhancements to the teaching and training of undergraduate students particularly in multirooted endodontics, removable prosthodontics and orthodontics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Qasim Javed
- Department of Conservative Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Qassim University, 51452, Buraidah, Qassim, PO Box 1162, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Ayman Moaz Abulhamael
- Department of Endodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, 21589, Jeddah, P.O. Box 80209, Saudi Arabia
| | - Zaina Ahmad
- Department of Operative Dentistry, Islamic International Dental College and Hospital, Riphah International University, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Muhammad
- Department of Operative Dentistry, Islamic International Dental College and Hospital, Riphah International University, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Ali Faridi
- Restorative Dental Sciences Department, College of Dentistry, Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
| | - Kiran Imtiaz Khan
- Department of Operative Dentistry, Frontier Medical and Dental College, Abbottabad, KPK, Pakistan
| | - Syed Rashid Habib
- Department of Prosthetic Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, King Abdullah Road, 11545, Riyadh, P. O. Box 60169, Saudi Arabia
| | - Kamran Ali
- College of Dental Medicine, Qatar University, 2713, Doha, Qatar.
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Mariño R, Manton D, Reid K, Delany C. Preparedness for dental practice in Australia: a qualitative study on the experiences of final-year students and new graduates. BMC MEDICAL EDUCATION 2023; 23:318. [PMID: 37158908 PMCID: PMC10165283 DOI: 10.1186/s12909-023-04306-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2023] [Accepted: 04/28/2023] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Limited data exists regarding the perspectives of newly graduated dental practitioners (NGDPs) and final-year students (FYS) about their preparedness for dental practice. This information is crucial to inform developments in ongoing professional development for newly qualified dental practitioners and future reviews and development of accreditation standards, policies, and the professional competencies of newly qualified dental practitioners. Thus, the primary goal of this paper was to describe the perceptions of preparedness for dental practice of NGDPs and FYSs. METHODS Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted between March and July 2020. All interviews were audiotaped, transcribed, and analysed using a thematic analysis. RESULTS Eighteen NGDPs and four FYS from across Australia participated in the qualitative interviews. A strong theme from the data was that respondents believed they were well prepared for common challenges in dental practice and patient care. A second prominent theme was participants' awareness of specific areas of limitation in their knowledge and specific skills including (list them). This data highlights a high level of self-awareness and potential for self-directed learning of NGDPs. It also provides specific content areas for future curriculum developers. CONCLUSIONS Newly graduated dental practitioner and final-year student participants were satisfied with the theoretical and evidence-based information in their formal learning and teaching activities to begin practicing as dental practitioners. In some areas, NGDPs felt underprepared, mostly attributed to limited clinical treatment exposure, and other contextual elements of clinical practice, and thought transitional support may be required. The research reinforces the value of seeking and learning from students' and NGDPs' perspectives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo Mariño
- Melbourne Dental School, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
- Center for Research in Epidemiology, Economics and Oral Public Health (CIEESPO, Faculty of Dentistry, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco, Chile.
| | - David Manton
- Melbourne Dental School, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
- University of Groningen, UMCG, Centre for Dentistry and Oral Hygiene, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Katharine Reid
- Department of Medical Education, Melbourne Medical School, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Clare Delany
- Department of Medical Education, Melbourne Medical School, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
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