Educating Nursing Students about Pediatric Oral Health: An Interprofessional Education Collaboration

Abstract

bstrAct Aim: Despite dental caries in children being a large public health concern in the United States, there remains a lack of training of nondental healthcare professionals in pediatric oral health. An interprofessional learning experience for nursing students with pediatric dental residents was created to increase nursing students’ knowledge of pediatric oral health. The study’s purpose was to evaluate the effectiveness of an interdisciplinary education program targeting nursing students providing a didactic and clinical oral health program. Materials and methods: In 2016, 105 nursing students were recruited and presented oral health information in a didactic program, didactic and clinical program, clinical program, or no program. Nursing students were surveyed to assess their knowledge before and after the educational experiences. Results: There was a significant improvement in children’s oral health knowledge for nursing students in the clinical, clinical and didactic, and didactic program in comparison to those that did not complete a program ( p < 0.05). Conclusion: This interprofessional learning experience increased students’ knowledge of pediatric oral health, and additionally reflected in a positive experience for nursing students.