Impact of the modified curricula on periodontal instrumentation skills development during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2023.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of curriculum modifications on periodontal instrumentation skills development among classes of 2021, 2022, and 2023 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: The pandemic began and affected the three classes at different stages of their studies. Onsite simulation-based learning (SBL) was employed for the classes of 2021 and 2022; remote SBL was adopted for the class of 2023. Modified clinical education, due to social distancing guidelines, impacted the class of 2021 significantly and the class of 2022 to a lesser extent. A multiple linear regression model was built to examine the association between the fourth-year patient-based scaling competency examination scores and selected predictors.

Results: The classes of 2021 and 2023 showed consistent performances over time, while the class of 2022 exhibited significant variation exhibiting the lowest performance at the second-year practical examination. While the clinical experience of the class of 2021 was significantly less than that of the classes of 2022 and 2023, the fourth-year competency examination scores did not differ across the three classes. The clinic points (p = 0.014) significantly affected the fourth-year competency examination score while student gender (p = 0.18), the first-year (p = 0.736), and second-year (p = 0.198) practical examination scores showed no correlations.

Conclusion: Based on student performance in the fourth-year scaling competency examination, the curriculum modifications due to the COVID pandemic did not affect student learning outcomes. Clinical experience was the most influential determinant of skill development in periodontal instrumentation.