European Journal of Dental Education最新文献

Introduction: Despite the increasing representation of women in the dental profession, gender inequality remains in academic leadership roles. This study aimed to evaluate the gender distribution of academics and deans working in dental faculties in Türkiye.

Materials and methods: A retrospective cross-sectional analysis was conducted using publicly available data from 154 dental faculties (73 state and 81 foundation) between January and March 2025. Information was collected from 3061 academics, including their gender, academic title, specialty, and university affiliation. Gender classification was confirmed using the records of the Council of Higher Education and cross-validated using the Gender API and NamSor software. Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS Statistics (version 23).

Results: Among participants, 62.3% were women and 37.7% were men. Notably, women outnumbered men in nearly all academic ranks, with the highest proportion observed among lecturers (76.5%). Most professors were also women (51.5%), highlighting a remarkable shift in traditional academic gender dynamics. The gender distribution varied across disciplines: women were predominant in pedodontics (80.5%) and restorative dentistry (70%), while men were predominant in oral surgery (62.5%) and implantology (83.3%). In contrast, only 25.8% of deans were women, indicating persistent underrepresentation in high-level administrative positions. Gender detection tools showed high concordance with the actual data (Cohen's κ > 0.91).

Conclusion: Although women represent the majority of academics in Turkish dental faculties, a significant gender gap remains in the top leadership roles. Institutional policies and targeted mentorship programs are needed to promote gender equity in academic advancement and decision-making.

Introduction: Medicine is evolving rapidly, requiring continuous education for dentists, particularly in periodontology. Particularly due to the high prevalence of periodontal diseases, treatment needs remain high. While several continuing education programmes are available, outcome assessments are rarely reported. This study compared the knowledge levels of participants from different continuing education formats in periodontology.

Materials and methods: An exploratory study was conducted with postgraduate Master Periodontology students (group 1) and Curriculum graduates (group 2). Participants completed a fictive patient case covering key periodontal topics. Eleven topics were covered, addressing all areas of treatment. A total of 53 points could be achieved, with one point given for each correct answer. Data were analysed using one-way ANOVA and Scheffé-method (p < 0.05).

Results: A total of 58 dentists with 32 Master graduates (20 male, 12 female) and 26 Curriculum graduates (11 male, 15 female) could be recruited. Master graduates scored significantly higher than Curriculum graduates in patient case questions regarding anamnesis (p = 0.001), link of periodontitis and general diseases (p < 0.001), oral microbiology (p < 0.001), non-surgical therapy (p = 0.034), adjunctive therapy (p = 0.001), oral mucosal disease (p = 0.002) and implant therapy (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: The results demonstrate that the blended-learning approach effectively enhanced participants' knowledge, facilitating the transfer of theory to practice. The additional effort led to better therapeutic decisions, underscoring its impact on clinical practice.

Introduction: Oral health care professionals continuously come into contact with bodily fluids containing many pathogens. Hand hygiene should be used to prevent cross transmission. We aimed to examine the accuracy of application of alcohol-based hand rub (ABHR) according to the WHO hand hygiene steps at a dental school.

Materials and methods: Students and staff filled out a short questionnaire to obtain demographic data and answered questions on their perceived efficacy and knowledge of their hand hygiene. Participants rubbed their hands as they usually do when working in the clinic using an ABHR supplemented with a fluorescent marker, after which the dorsal and palmar sides of both hands were photographed. Photographs were scored according to the steps of the WHO guideline. Parts of the hands were scored as completely or insufficiently covered with ABHR.

Results: The average hand hygiene accuracy of Dutch dental students and staff was 59%. Only 2.8% of them had excellent accuracy of hand hygiene. The most inefficiently performed steps were rubbing the thumb and rubbing the backs of the fingers to opposing palms. No differences could be observed according to student training year or being student or staff.

Conclusion: Overall, hand hygiene accuracy at a Dutch dental school was comparable to that observed in other health care sectors. Only a few participants demonstrated excellent technique and performance was not associated with educational level. These findings highlight the need for greater emphasis on hand hygiene in dental curricula as well as complementary strategies for improving hand hygiene.

Background: Reflective practice is essential for dental educators' professional development, academic and clinical performance, decision-making and problem-solving skills. It bridges the gap between theory and practice, fostering competency development and encouraging a deeper approach to learning. Reflective practice offers educators an opportunity to reflect on how their actions impact both teaching and learning. However, without proper guidance on how to reflect effectively, reflection often becomes anecdotal and lacks meaningful insights, which can lead to reluctance in engaging with the process. FOUR STRUCTURED REFLECTIVE PRACTICE MODELS FOR THE CLINICAL EDUCATOR: Recognising the significance of reflection for dental educators' professional development and the necessity of facilitating the process, this commentary explores the importance of reflective practice and highlights the value of structured models in enhancing teaching practice. We focus on four widely used models-Gibbs' reflective cycle, Kolb's experiential learning cycle, Schön's reflection in and on action, and Rolfe's framework for reflective practice-discussing their structure, applicability, and strengths and limitations for dental educators and practitioners. Practical resources and examples are provided to help educators integrate these models into their practice, aiming to enhance both teaching and clinical skills while fostering continuous professional growth.

Conclusion: The models offer structured frameworks that educators can use to engage in a reflective process, allowing them to critically assess both positive and negative experiences, examine their actions, and deepen their understanding of educational practice. By utilising these models, educators can refine their teaching methods and contribute to the ongoing improvement of the clinical learning environment.

Introduction: Dental institutions often include advertising ethics as part of the undergraduate curriculum to instil professional standards. However, there is limited evidence on graduates' awareness and understanding of advertising guidelines in their subsequent practice.

Objective: To assess the awareness and knowledge of dental advertising guidelines among recent dental graduates in Malaysia and to compare the outcomes between those from public and private universities.

Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2024 involving recent dental graduates from eight Malaysian universities. A newly designed and validated questionnaire was used to assess awareness and knowledge across seven domains of dental advertising ethics, including online professionalism, product recommendations, and the promotion of clinic facilities and treatments. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to compare responses between graduates from public and private universities.

Results: In total, 253 participating graduates completed the online questionnaire. Awareness among public university graduates was significantly higher than that of their private counterparts (p-value < 0.05). The mean knowledge score was 61.80%. The domain with the highest knowledge score was 'online professionalism' (71.30%), whereas the lowest-scoring domain was 'recommendation of specific products' (46.77%). Public university graduates scored significantly higher in the domains of 'description of clinic facilities' and 'advertisement of specific treatment' (p-value < 0.05).

Conclusion: Participants from public universities reported significantly higher awareness and performed better in specific domains related to dental advertising ethics. These findings highlight the importance of a standardised and comprehensive education on ethical advertising practices across all dental institutions.

Background: The acquisition of knowledge, skills and positive attitudes in managing people with disabilities (PWD) is essential to ensuring the provision of high-quality professional services.

Objectives: This study was undertaken to determine perceptions of PWD among Malaysian students enrolled in clinical healthcare programmes and its correlation with educational experiences.

Methodology: A self-administered online survey, utilising a content- and face-validated questionnaire, developed from previous literature, was conducted on all final year medical, dental, pharmacy, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, nursing, medical laboratory technology, medical imaging, optometry and nutrition/dietetics students of a Malaysian institution. Quantitative data was analysed via ANOVA, Chi-Square and Fischer's exact tests (significance value p < 0.05).

Results: The majority of students have previously managed patients with physical, intellectual and mental/psychological disabilities, but not those with visual and hearing impairments. There was an insignificant difference in contact with and attitude towards PWD among students representing the different programmes. Students of various programmes noted significant differences in experiences in managing patients with physical, intellectual, visual and hearing disabilities, as well as comfort level in managing patients with physical, intellectual and mental/psychological disabilities. Most dental, physiotherapy, occupational therapy and nursing students felt that they received adequate training in managing PWD. Students who perceived that they received adequate training noted positive experience and comfort in managing all of the different PWD groups (p < 0.05).

Conclusion: The findings of this study provide useful information for the various programmes in developing an effective curriculum that prepares its graduates to manage PWD in a competent manner.

Objectives: To investigate the opinions, attitudes and beliefs of dental students regarding the role of spirituality and religiosity (S/R) in clinical practice.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in a Brazilian dental school. The Brazilian-Portuguese version of the Network for Research Spirituality and Health (NERSH) questionnaire was used. Descriptive analyses were conducted to report data and logistic regression models were constructed to identify the factors associated with students' opinions, attitudes and beliefs about S/R.

Results: A total of 336 undergraduate dental students (response rate = 83.1%) were included, predominantly females (66.4%) and mean age of 22.2 (SD: 3.6) years. Most students identified as moderately/very spiritual (69.6%) and religious (64.9%), considered it appropriate to address S/R when a patient/relative brings them up (69%), and agreed that beliefs could greatly influence a patient's health (61%). This influence was also noted for dental conditions such as temporomandibular joint dysfunction (68.5%), periodontal disease (63.4%) and dental caries (50.4%). However, most (78.0%) had never addressed S/R during consultations and did not receive formal training (84.8%). Seven out of ten students reported barriers that discourage them from discussing S/R, including fear of offending patients, professional neutrality and subject discomfort. Generally, older students, male students, those at more advanced stages of the programme, and those with stronger S/R beliefs tended to have more positive opinions and attitudes toward the subject.

Conclusion: Although most dental students hold positive opinions and attitudes toward S/R in clinical practice, structured training and systematic approaches remain lacking. These findings underscore the importance of non-biological factors in dentistry.

Background/aim: One of the largest unmet dental care needs in Germany concerns dependent older people (DOP). The aim of this Delphi study was to define learning objectives (LOs) for the dental curriculum, specifying the skills, abilities, and attitudes necessary to enable and motivate future dentists to provide oral health care to DOP.

Method: LOs from international guidelines for special care dentistry and gerodontology were mapped and aligned with the current guidelines of the German dental curriculum. Based on this alignment, comprehensive LOs were formulated and ranked through a Delphi process. The target group consisted of dental education experts from German universities (14 in first round/12 in second round), all of whom had expertise in gerodontology or special care dentistry.

Results: A framework consisting of six competence areas was established: (1) Care dependency in older individuals, (2) Access & barriers to oral health, (3) Legal aspects, (4) Communication, (5) Effects of medical and functional condition on oral health, (6) Clinical management of DOP. The participants agreed on a total of 43 LOs. After refinement, a graduate profile for dental students in Germany with 21 LOs with a focus on the oral health of DOP was developed.

Discussion: The results of this study can be used to provide standardised education about dental care of DOP in Germany. By implementing the LOs and the graduate profile to the undergraduate dental curriculum, students should be prepared for the requirements of dental care for DOP after graduation.

Introduction: This paper describes Doctor of Dental Surgery students' perspectives on participating in NPAL sessions at the School of Dentistry at the University of Alberta. NPAL provides early clinical experiences (ECE) for junior students (mentees) assisted by senior students (mentors).

Method: A convergent, parallel mixed method of concurrently collecting and analysing quantitative and qualitative data was used. Junior students completed daily forms and a written reflective assignment. Senior students completed an end-of-year survey and participated in a focus group.

Results: Most junior students found their NPAL sessions useful and their interactions with senior peers very positive. Benefits included an enhanced sense of the importance of patient care and the opportunity to apply concepts in practice. Senior students appreciated the collegiality and support provided by the mentees. The majority of senior students reported that their NPAL experiences as mentees themselves during the early years of the program helped with their transition to fully immersive comprehensive patient care in the third year. Recommendations for improvement included ensuring all mentees are exposed to a wide range of patient cases and have more opportunities to perform procedures.

Conclusion: ECE using NPAL enabled junior students to become comfortable in the clinical environment and perform simple procedures on patients as their skill set developed. Senior students also benefited from the experiences as they provided opportunities to develop mentorship and leadership skills. This strategy may be useful for other institutions interested in implementing early clinical experiences to ease the pre-clinical-clinical transition for students.

Introduction: Although magnification loupes offer well-documented advantages, their initial adaptation can be challenging, often deterring widespread adoption. Without sufficient training during this critical period, students may feel inadequately prepared, limiting their ability to benefit from loupes and contributing to reluctance in their use. To address this issue, this study designed and evaluated a training program focused on the use of Galilean loupes, aiming to enhance the ergonomic posture of dental students.

Methods: Thirty-one second-year dental students were divided into an experimental group and a control group. Response variables were compliance with ergonomic posture requirements, neck angular deviation, muscle contraction of the back and neck and self-reported perception of pain/discomfort. The independent variables were training program and timing of evaluation (T0, before the program; T1, 1 week after the program). Data analysis used mixed repeated-measures ANOVA and nonparametric mixed repeated-measures ANOVA (α = 5%).

Results: For posture compliance, the experimental group showed improved scores at T1 (p = 0.044), while the control group showed no change. Angular deviation was smaller at T1. No significant interaction was found for muscle contractions. Pain/discomfort perception significantly decreased over time (p = 0.006).

Discussion: The training program significantly improved students' compliance to ergonomic posture requirements, though it had no measurable effect on the other variables assessed. These findings are noteworthy, as they indicate that targeted training in the use of magnification loupes can effectively improve students' compliance to ergonomic posture standards. Notably, changes in neck angular deviation and reported pain or discomfort were associated with the timing of assessment rather than the training itself. This suggests that the use of magnification loupes may contribute to reducing angular deviation in the neck as students gain confidence and become more accustomed to magnification. Overall, the training program demonstrated a clear benefit in supporting ergonomic compliance among dental students.