bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Chamfer Finish Line: Preclinical Student Performance Using Different Bur Designs
Authors: Mansueto Michael A. , Abdulkarim Hatem A. , Thabet Walid R. , Haney Stephan J.
Published: June 2020

The primary purposes of this investigation were to evaluate sophomore dental student performance in the production of a chamfer finish line using two diamond bur types—a round‐ended bur and a torpedo‐shaped bur—and to gain student feedback about their preferences for bur type. Fifty students took part in the study, each of whom prepared the buccal surfaces of two mandibular molar typodont teeth, producing chamfer finish lines. Students prepared both teeth in the same laboratory session and were randomly assigned to two groups that were required to prepare the first of the two molars with a specific bur type. The prepared chamfer finish lines were scored and the data analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed‐rank test. Student performance was significantly better when the round‐ended bur was used (p=0.005). Student feedback was collected with a survey that consisted of four questions and the opportunity to provide write‐in comments. In response to the question “Overall, was one bur type better?” 58 percent of the students preferred the round‐ended bur for creating a chamfer finish line. The most frequent write‐in comment, made by twelve of the fifty students, criticized the torpedo‐shaped bur for creating finish lines that were too shallow or too long.
The Influence of Technology on Reflective Learning in Dental Hygiene Education
Authors: Hanson Kami , Alexander Susan
Published: June 2020

The role of reflection in the learning process is essential to drive a meaningful experience for the student. Educators have recognized this concept and continue to research the impact of reflection on learning. The purpose of this research project was to investigate the level of reflection that takes place when students use two different types of media for reflective journaling: hard copy vs. electronic. Journal data, both hard copy and electronic, were gathered from groups of university dental hygiene students. As part of regular course requirements, students were assigned to maintain a reflective journal regarding their clinical experiences. Written data were evaluated using a rubric and coding scheme to determine the levels of reflective thinking evidenced in student journals for both media. Researchers applied qualitative methods to analyze the textual content and/or discourse using a constant comparative, “counting and coding” approach. Results were analyzed and presented as comparisons of descriptive statistics between student group and with qualitative discourse. The evidence suggests that the electronic format of journaling influenced the students’ ability to engage in reflective thinking and action, as well as develop higher levels of critical thinking skills.
A Longitudinal Study of Stress in First‐Year Dental Students
Authors: Silverstein Sarah T. , Kritz‐Silverstein Donna
Published: June 2020

This study examines the association of stress with performance and health in first‐year dental students and changes in the amount and sources of stress over one year. Students at four U.S. dental schools completed the Dental Environment Stress (DES) scale, Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), stress rating, and demographic questions at the start of their first year of school (baseline), 11.7 weeks, and one year later when first‐year GPA, illnesses, health ratings, and symptom frequency were also assessed. Overall, 296 (186 men, 110 women) responded at baseline and after one year; 205 responded all three times. Stress scores were negatively correlated with GPA (DES, p=.006; PSS, p=.04; stress rating, p=.002) and with physical and emotional health ratings (p's≤.002), but positively associated with illness (p<.05), symptoms (p<.0001), and symptom frequency (p's<.05). Stress was higher after one year (p's<.001) and varied by school (p<.0001). Women (p<.01), younger (p<.003), and single students (p<.03) had higher stress at baseline, but after one year, there were no differences by gender, age, or marital status. Ratings for items on the Dental Environment Stress scale related to schoolwork were high at baseline and increased further by one year (p's≤.0001); items related to school atmosphere had low ratings initially with large increases over time (p's<.0001). In conclusion, stress increases over time in first‐year dental students and is related to detrimental effects on performance and health. Variation between schools may reflect different teaching methods. Changes in sources of stress may reflect the different contributions of anticipatory and situational stress over time. First‐year dental students may benefit from stress reduction programs.
Evaluating Tooth Color Matching Ability of Dental Students
Authors: Jaju Rishita A. , Nagai Shigemi , Karimbux Nadeem , Da Silva John D.
Published: June 2020

Visual shade matching has remained a skill acquired through clinical experience. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the shade matching ability of dental students as they progress through their education. Sixty‐five students, representing four levels of experience by year enrolled in dental school, participated in this study. Students were given a preclinical shade tab matching task. They were also asked to choose the best shade match for a natural tooth in each of three patients. The natural tooth shade matching task was designed to have simple, moderate, and complex cases to match. The frequency of correct answers was compared across samples across the four levels of fundamental tab match ability and clinical experience. On average, 51 percent of the students were able to match the correct shade tab in the matching task in a bench setting. For the natural tooth color matching task, 49.2 percent of the students selected the clinically acceptable color matched shade tabs (ΔE*≤2.69). Although there was no statistically significant difference across the levels of fundamental ability and experience, rates of correct answers for natural tooth color matching progressively improved for the complex case from year 1 to year 4. This study reveals that, for complex cases, education and knowledge of color science combined with clinical experience improve students’ ability for color matching in a clinical setting.
Patients with Special Needs: Dental Students’ Educational Experiences, Attitudes, and Behavior
Authors: Vainio Lauren , Krause Meggan , Inglehart Marita R.
Published: June 2020

Accreditation standards require U.S. dental schools to prepare their graduates for the diagnosis of treatment needs of patients with special health care needs (SHCN). The objective of this study was to explore dental students’ perceptions of their education about these issues, their satisfaction with this education, and their professional attitudes and behavioral intentions concerning treating patients with SHCN in the future. Web‐based survey data were collected from forty‐nine dental student leaders in thirteen U.S. dental schools and paper‐and‐pencil survey data from 397 dental students at a Midwestern dental school. Most respondents agreed that it is important to be educated about providing care for patients with SHCN and that they will provide care for these patients in the future. However, their satisfaction with their education was not equally positive. Their perceived quality of their dental education was correlated with their confidence concerning treating SHCN patients; their confidence was in turn correlated with their intentions to include these patients in their patient families in their future professional lives. In conclusion, dental students are strongly motivated to learn about providing care for patients with SHCN. The better their dental education prepares them for this task, the more confident they will be when treating these patients and the more likely they will be to provide care for these patients.
Recruitment, Development, and Retention of Dental Faculty in a Changing Environment
Authors: John Vanchit , Papageorge Maria , Jahangiri Leila , Wheater Michelle , Cappelli David , Frazer Robert , Sohn Woosung
Published: June 2020

The scarcity of full‐time clinical faculty members in dental schools across the country is a major crisis confronting dentistry. Dental schools are experiencing critical faculty shortages and are struggling to maintain appropriate faculty to student ratios. The adage of “doing more with less” applies, in many ways, to dental schools and their mission of educating future dentists. Solutions to the problem have included plans to recruit, develop, and mentor faculty members. However, progress has been slow. Dental schools have created incentive programs to help with faculty shortages and develop future educators in dentistry. This requires commitment and resources and will take years before these efforts and their impact can be assessed. Creative solutions need to be developed both nationally and locally to reverse the trend more rapidly.
Board‐to‐Board Consistency in Initial Dental Licensure Examinations
Authors: Chambers David W.
Published: June 2020

The consistency between student clinical performance in dental school and performance on initial licensure examinations is known to be weak. A review of the literature failed to identify any reports of the consistency between performance on initial licensure examinations and quality of technical work in practice. This research examines the consistency of performance among candidates who took two initial licensure examinations given by different testing agencies but for the same jurisdiction within a few weeks of each other. Twenty‐seven candidates from one dental school took both the California Dental Board examination and the Western Regional Examining Board initial licensure examinations in 2005 and 2006. Their performance on the patient‐based amalgam and composite restorations and the root planing tests were compared in these two board settings and with various dental school measures of competence. Consistent with previous findings, school‐to‐board performance was barely above chance levels. Board‐to‐board association was also insignificant and accounted for 12 percent of the common variance in the best case. Patient‐based initial licensure examinations have yet to demonstrate validity in terms of consistency of performance for candidates from one performance to the next.
Teaching Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Dental Education: A Multipurpose Method
Authors: Brondani Mario A. , Paterson Randy
Published: June 2020

Discussion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) issues has fallen short in dental curricula. This article aims to describe the didactic approach used to present issues of sexuality in the D.M.D. curriculum at the University of British Columbia. This descriptive article discusses the main pedagogies employed to present and discuss LGBT issues: lecture‐based seminars, guest panel discussion with members of the LGBT community, poster discussion, and student reflections on the topic of sexuality. The approach to sexual diversity presented here does not profess to make an otherwise homophobic student LGBT‐friendly, but it exposes all students to alternative views of sexuality, challenges their values and beliefs, and celebrates diversity. The methodology presented has had a positive impact upon students as illustrated by their reflections, but further discussion is needed to better understand the implications of LGBT issues in both academic and professional settings.
A New Dental Curriculum for Chinese Research Universities
Authors: Sun Weibin , Hu Qingang , Zhang Hai , Liu Yu , Bensch Brittany , Wang Wenmei , Ge Jiuyu , Xie Sijin , Wang Zhiyong , Yu Qing , Nie Rongrong , Li Huang , Xie Xiaoqiu
Published: June 2020

The current dental curriculum in China was developed from the system in the Soviet Union in the 1950s. This curriculum is outdated and must be reformed to keep pace with the developments of modern dental education. The new dental educational system should be customized to China's needs: care for a large population with poor overall oral health, operating within a government‐owned, centralized health care delivery system. Chinese research universities have a mission to produce competent dentists who will also be educators and researchers. To efficiently train academic dentists who can also meet the clinical needs of today's Chinese population, a new dental curriculum was developed at the Institute and Hospital of Dentistry, Nanjing University Medical School. This curriculum has four main features: 1) a two‐year general higher education plus five‐year dental education (“2+5”) model; 2) improved integration of didactic and practical learning; 3) improved integration of dental education with research training; and 4) improved overall sequencing of the entire curriculum. This article describes the details of this new dental curriculum.
Community‐Based Dental Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago
Authors: Knight G. William
Published: June 2020

Since 2002, community‐based education at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry (COD) has evolved from non‐existent to a robust program that is an essential component of the predoctoral program. As part of the college's curricular innovation, community‐based education has demonstrated alignment of the COD's mission with that of our parent institution, contributed significantly to student learning and preparedness, and enhanced clinic experiences and revenue. Student interest and support have been and continue to be enthusiastic and valued. The faculty has been generally supportive, but properly focused on demonstrated student learning outcomes. This faculty observation and evaluation, supported by evidence, has resulted in the faculty's rethinking traditional teaching and learning strategies, allowing innovative educational changes.
Community‐Based Dental Education at Boston University
Authors: Mascarenhas Ana Karina
Published: June 2020

Community‐based dental education has been integral to the Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine's mission for the past thirty years. This report describes the programs, their history, and their outcomes. The three main educational experiences outside the school are the applied professional experience clerkship, the pediatric dentistry rotation, and the extramural training program. By all student and community outcomes measured, such as students’ self‐confidence, patient management skills, clinical technical skills, and increase in community members’ access to care, these programs are a success.
A Case Completion Curriculum for Clinical Dental Education: Replacing Numerical Requirements with Patient‐Based Comprehensive Care
Authors: Park Sang E. , Timothé Peggy , Nalliah Romesh , Karimbux Nadeem Y. , Howell T. Howard
Published: June 2020

The aim of this article is to describe the development and implementation of a case completion curriculum as a new clinical education model for the predoctoral program at Harvard School of Dental Medicine. In this innovative model, students conduct patient‐based comprehensive care and complete assigned patient cases on which their performance is assessed, in contrast with a traditional model based on procedural numerical requirements. In our new model, senior tutors, who are full‐time faculty members, act as group leaders responsible for patient assignment, treatment planning, monitoring of student performance, and verification of patient care. The number of completed patient cases in this new comprehensive care system increased from a previous average of 12.8 cases per student prior to graduation to 22.8 cases. Additionally, the number of patients who had to be transferred due to outstanding or pending treatment when their student provider graduated or because of students’ need to fulfill discipline requirements has decreased from an average of 16.4 to 4.6.
An Innovative HIV Training Program for Dental Students
Authors: Rogers Thomas C. , Zaninovic Periza , Urankar Yashashri R. , Natto Zuhair S. , Turner Rodney L. , Toledo Gerardo A. , Duran Graciela G. , Trott James R.
Published: June 2020

Dentists need to be able to give people with HIV/AIDS compassionate and comprehensive care. Previous studies have shown that many dental students have negative attitudes towards treating such individuals. This article addresses the effectiveness of a program that trains dental students in the issues of treating this population. All predoctoral students at the Loma Linda University School of Dentistry are required to receive this training. Students complete a pre‐session survey during their third year and a post‐session survey as they complete the training during their fourth year. The survey was administered from 2003 to 2009 during which 386 students completed responses to the post‐session survey. Five questions in the survey address self‐evaluation of knowledge, attitudes, and confidence in the efficacy of universal precautions and post‐exposure prophylaxis following bloodborne exposures. This study reports on five two‐year testing cycles and shows significant shifts in all five areas surveyed. The most significant gains were in the two areas that are not addressed in much detail in other courses in the dental school curriculum. These are familiarity with post‐exposure prophylaxis (PEP) and confidence in the efficacy of PEP. These data support the usefulness of such a program in preparing future dentists to deliver appropriate care to persons living with HIV/AIDS.
Differences Between ADEA Annual Session Poster Abstracts and Their Corresponding Full Published Articles
Authors: Yuan Judy Chia‐Chun , Galang Maria Therese S. , Lee Damian J. , Barao Valentim A.R. , Shyamsunder Nodesh , Sukotjo Cortino
Published: June 2020

The purpose of this study was to investigate differences between abstracts of posters presented at the 79th (2002) and 80th (2003) Annual Session & Exhibition of the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) and the published full‐length articles resulting from the same studies. The abstracts for poster presentation sessions were downloaded, and basic characteristics of the abstracts and their authors were determined. A PubMed search was then performed to identify the publication of full‐length articles based on those abstracts in a peer‐reviewed journal. The differences between the abstract and the article were examined and categorized as major and minor differences. Differences identified included authorship, title, materials and methods, results, conclusions, and funding. Data were analyzed with both descriptive and analytic statistics. Overall, 89 percent of the abstracts had at least one variation from its corresponding article, and 65 percent and 76 percent of the abstracts had at least one major and minor variation, respectively, from its corresponding article. The most prevalent major variation was in study results, and the most prevalent minor variation was change in the number of authors. The discussion speculates on some possible reasons for these differences.
Developing New Dental Communication Skills Assessment Tools by Including Patients and Other Stakeholders
Authors: Wener Mickey Emmons , Schönwetter Dieter J. , Mazurat Nita
Published: June 2020

Effectively using patients as teachers to provide authentic feedback is an underused strategy in dental education, but it has potential for integrating the teaching of therapeutic communication skills within the dental clinic setting. This study focuses on the absence of patient input into the design of instruments used to assess students’ clinical communication skills and demonstrates how a holistic approach, with input from key stakeholders including patients, was used to produce two such instruments. The development of complementary communication assessment instruments, one for patient use and one for student use, took place in three phases. In Phase I the authors reviewed a sample of existing patient satisfaction surveys; in Phase II they captured input from stakeholders; and Phase III resulted in the generation of the patient communication assessment instrument and the student communication self‐assessment instrument. This article highlights communication skill issues relevant to the education of oral health professionals and describes the rationale and process for the development of the first iteration of the patient assessment and student self‐assessment clinical communication instruments.
The Use of Haptics to Predict Preclinic Operative Dentistry Performance and Perceptual Ability
Authors: Urbankova Alice , Engebretson Steven P.
Published: June 2020

The aim of this study was to test whether performance on a range of manual dexterity haptic simulator exercises was associated with preclinical operative dentistry examination and Perceptual Ability Test (PAT) scores. Thirty‐nine first‐year dental students were tested with three haptic exercises—straight line, circle, and mirror line—each performed twice. Haptic exercise outcomes for accuracy, time, and success rate were measured using commercially available computer software. Spearman correlation coefficients and Student's t‐test were used to assess the results. PAT and exam scores were not significantly correlated. Significant correlations were observed between exam scores and both time and accuracy scores for the circle and mirror exams. These results suggest that haptic devices have a potential role in predicting performance in preclinical dental education. Further studies are warranted to develop and validate diagnostic testing strategies for dental students and to evaluate implementation of haptics in the dental teaching environment.
Predictors of Academic Performance for Applicants to an International Dental Studies Program in the United States
Authors: Pitigoi‐Aron Gabriela , King Patricia A. , Chambers David W.
Published: June 2020

The number of U.S. and Canadian dental schools offering programs for dentists with degrees from other countries leading to the D.D.S. or D.M.D. degree has increased recently. This fact, along with the diversity of educational systems represented by candidates for these programs, increases the importance of identifying valid admissions predictors of success in international dental student programs. Data from 148 students accepted into the international dental studies program at the University of the Pacific from 1994 through 2004 were analyzed. Dependent variables were comprehensive cumulative GPA at the end of both the first and second years of the two‐year program. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and both Parts I and II of the National Board Dental Examination (NBDE) were significant positive predictors of success. Performance on laboratory tests of clinical skill in operative dentistry and in fixed prosthodontics and ratings from interviewers were not predictive of overall success in the program. Although this study confirms the predictive value of written tests such as the TOEFL and NBDE, it also contributes to the literature documenting inconsistent results regarding other types of predictors. It may be the case that characteristics of individual programs or features of the applicant pools for each may require use of admissions predictors that are unique to schools.
Mentoring of Dental and Dental Hygiene Faculty: A Case Study
Authors: Bagramian Robert A. , Taichman Russell S. , McCauley Laurie , Green Thomas G. , Inglehart Marita Rohr
Published: June 2020

Given the predicted shortages of dental faculty in the United States, it is important to retain faculty members. Mentoring could play a crucial role in this context. The objectives of this case study were to explore how a six‐year mentoring program in the Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry changed faculty members’ perceptions of support from colleagues and their mentoring expectations. In addition, we sought to determine how junior versus senior faculty members and mentors versus mentees differed in their perceptions of faculty roles, their self‐perceived competence, and their awareness of departmental expectations at the end of the program. Data were collected with self‐administered surveys from twenty‐five of the thirty‐six faculty members in this department in 2002 (response rate: 69 percent) and from thirty‐seven of the fifty‐four faculty members in 2008 (response rate: 69 percent). The results showed that the perceptions of support from colleagues improved significantly over the six‐year period. During the same time period, mentoring expectations increased. In 2008, junior faculty members as compared to senior faculty members remained less positive about their role as faculty members, felt less well prepared for their professional life, and were less aware of departmental expectations. In conclusion, a departmental mentoring program resulted in improved support from colleagues and increased expectations concerning mentoring experiences. However, future targeted interventions are needed to address the identified differences between junior and senior faculty members. Recommendations for faculty mentoring efforts are discussed.
Expanding Dental Education Partnerships Beyond the Four Walls
Authors: Ballweg Ruth , Berg Joel , DeRouen Tim , Fiset Louis , Mouradian Wendy , Somerman Martha J.
Published: June 2020

The increasing complexities of health care that dental graduates must be equipped to handle require schools to develop new models of education in order to address these intricacies. To meet these challenges, it is the school's responsibility to provide an environment that fosters discovery and scholarly activity, embraces evidence‐based philosophies, encourages partnerships with other units on campus and the community, including the global community, and recognizes the richness of diversity in both our human resources and our thinking. Beyond new curriculum initiatives within our school, we recognized the need to build strong partnerships outside our four walls in order to respond to the challenges confronting us. Four such notable recent initiatives at the University of Washington School of Dentistry discussed in this article are Regional Initiatives in Dental Education, the Center for Pediatric Dentistry: Program in Early Childhood Oral Health, Northwest PRECEDENT (Practice‐based REsearch Collaborative in Evidence‐based DENTistry), and Alaska Native Dental Health Aide Therapist Program. These partnerships focus on new models to improve access to care and to enhance the impact of research on evidence‐based practice. These are examples of the many opportunities for us to act collectively in creating new models that ensure our graduates have the knowledge, attitudes, and skills to be competent oral health care professionals.
Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practice Regarding Infection Control Measures Among Dental Students in Central India
Authors: Singh Abhinav , Purohit Bharathi M. , Bhambal Ajay , Saxena Sudhanshu , Singh Anshika , Gupta Amrita
Published: June 2020

A questionnaire study was conducted among 245 dental students from Bhopal city, Central India, to determine their level of knowledge, attitudes, and practice regarding infection control measures and if any correlation exists among the knowledge, attitudes, and practice scores. The self‐administered questionnaire consisted of three parts: knowledge, attitudes, and practice. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to compare mean of knowledge, attitudes, and practice scores and Kendall's test to compute the correlation between knowledge, attitudes, and practice scores. A p value of ≤0.05 was considered significant for all statistical analyses. We found that 61.2 percent of the dental students had not been vaccinated with hepatitis B. Use of face mask, gloves, eyewear, and protective clothing as standard infection control measures was practiced only by two students. Mean knowledge, attitude, and practice scores were 3.75 (1.01), 3.40 (0.75), and 3.35 (1.04), respectively. Significant linear correlation was seen between attitude and practice scores (r=0.20, p≤0.01). The level of knowledge and practice of infection control measures was poor among dental students. The attitude towards infection control measures was positive, but a greater compliance was needed. We recommend rigorous training on infection control measures prior to graduation and mandatory hepatitis B immunization of students before exposure to clinical practice.
Factors Influencing Publication Rates of Abstracts Presented at the ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition
Authors: Galang Maria T.S. , Yuan Judy Chia‐Chun , Lee Damian J. , Barao Valentim A.R. , Shyamsunder Nodesh , Sukotjo Cortino
Published: June 2020

Factors related to the path of abstracts from presentation at a conference to publication as a full article have been analyzed in the medical field, but only a few studies have been performed in dentistry. This study investigated the rate of publication of articles based on abstracts presented at the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) Annual Session & Exhibition in 2002 and 2003 and the time lag to publication. This study also aimed to characterize the abstracts and subsequent articles and determine if there were any significant factors related to expansion of an abstract into a full manuscript. A total of 370 abstracts met the inclusion criteria and were examined for this study. Subsequent published articles were located using a standard PubMed search. Descriptive statistics and bivariate analyses were used to analyze the data collected (α=0.05). Results suggest that there was a low (19 percent) publication rate for articles based on abstracts presented at the meetings studied. The median time between abstract presentation and article publication was ten months. Factors that showed significant correlation to likelihood of article publication were multiple affiliations, presence of analytical statistics, and, to a lesser extent, funding. We suggest that presenters at these meetings should expand their abstracts into full manuscripts and seek to publish them in peer‐reviewed journals for the benefit of the profession.
Assessment of Willingness to Provide Diabetes Education and Counseling in a Dental School Clinic
Authors: Fischer Dena J. , Koerber Anne
Published: June 2020

Diabetes mellitus is a major public health concern for the U.S. population because of its high prevalence and long‐term health implications. The purpose of this study was to apply the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to assess dental faculty member and student willingness to provide diabetes education and counseling to patients in a dental school. A survey was administered to dental students (n=101 respondents) and faculty members (n=39 respondents), and summary scores for seven diabetic educational activities and TPB constructs were calculated and analyzed. Participants were most willing to refer a patient to a physician for treatment and provide basic information about diabetes and oral health, and they were least willing to provide basic information about diabetic medications. Importance, self‐efficacy, and barriers constructs predicted willingness to perform diabetic educational or counseling activities. Our findings suggest that, when developing innovative approaches to expand diabetic education and counseling in our dental education environment, programs should demonstrate how diabetic counseling can improve patients’ health and should include diabetic management skills‐building in the curriculum.
Transition of a Traditional Pharmacology Course for Dental Students to an Online Delivery Format: A Pilot Project
Authors: Gadbury‐Amyot Cynthia C. , Brockman William G.
Published: June 2020

The purpose of this report is to describe the rationale and subsequent transition of a pharmacology course for dental students from a traditional face‐to‐face lecture format to online delivery using a course management system (CMS). A dental school faculty member with dental and pharmacology degrees and a Ph.D. was asked to serve as course director and to develop and implement a nontraditional course using the Blackboard CMS technology, which houses asynchronous course content materials, study guides, and online resource materials. Respondus software was used to create, manage, and administer weekly online quizzes. A comprehensive midterm and final examination were conducted in a traditional face‐to‐face setting. A survey was used to capture student satisfaction with this self‐directed introductory pharmacology course. Participants were second‐year dental students (Classes of 2011 and 2012). There was a survey response rate of 91 percent (179/197). The Likert‐style survey questions produced ordinal data from which the median and interquartile range were calculated. On a scale in which 1=Poor, 5=Excellent, the median evaluation for the instructor was 4 (IQR=1.5). On a global question that asked how students rate the course overall, the median score was 4 (IQR=1.0). Results show that a majority of students were positive about the online delivery of the introductory pharmacology course and for many students this was their first online course experience. Resistance to self‐directed learning was a theme with those students who rated the course poorly. In a comparison of overall course grades from the previous year, student performance in this course was much stronger. As a result of student feedback seeking more interaction with the course director, it was determined that the next time the course is offered there will be additional opportunities for greater face‐to‐face time with the instructor. Ongoing evaluation will be important as new teaching technologies emerge and are adopted for teaching and learning.
Incoming Dental Students’ Expectations and Acceptance of an Electronic Textbook Program
Authors: Brunet Darlene P. , Bates Michael L. , Gallo John R. , Strother Elizabeth A.
Published: June 2020

Since 2005, the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center School of Dentistry has required the VitalSource Technologies, Inc. Bookshelf as the textbook program for all dental students. In a 2008 survey, four classes of dental students expressed dissatisfaction with most features of the bookshelf. With the expectation that incoming students would be more accustomed and amenable to digital textbooks and to further determine student attitudes toward electronic textbooks, we developed two surveys for first‐year dental students in the class of 2013. The sixty‐five first‐year students received a survey (S1) one week before they were introduced to the e‐textbook program. Questions centered on their undergraduate experience with e‐books and their expectations of studying with an electronic textbook collection. In the second survey (S2), sent nine months later, the questions focused on students’ opinion of the VitalSource Bookshelf. Forty‐five students (69.2 percent) completed the S1 survey. Of those, thirty‐six (80 percent) responded that they never used e‐textbooks in college. Of the nine students who responded that they used e‐books, only two liked them without reservations. The response rate to S2 increased to fifty students (77 percent). After using VitalSource for nine months, thirty‐three students (66 percent) indicated a preference for reading print textbooks, compared to forty‐seven students (57.3 percent) of the four classes surveyed in 2008. Although we expected incoming dental students to have had previous experience with e‐textbooks, only nine students had used e‐books in college courses. Few students indicated preference for e‐textbooks, and over half of the group was undecided. After experience with VitalSource for first‐year courses, students indicated that they like VitalSource for the ability to search for specific topics across the entire collection of dental books, but not for reading large amounts of text.
Oral Health Promotion Through an Online Training Program for Medical Students
Authors: de Sousa Eskenazi Ednalva , de Arruda Martins Mílton , Ferreira Mario
Published: June 2020

The objective of this study was to compare the impact on knowledge and counseling skills of face‐to‐face and Internet‐based oral health training programs on medical students. Participants consisted of 148 (82 percent) of the 180 invited students attending their fifth academic year at the Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, Brasil, in 2007. The interventions took place during a three‐month training period in the clinical Center for Health Promotion, which comprised part of a clerkship in Internal Medicine. The students were divided into four groups: 1) Control Group (Control), with basic intervention; 2) Brochure Group (Br), with basic intervention plus complete brochure with oral health themes; 3) Cybertutor Group (Cy), with basic intervention plus access to an Internet‐based training program about oral health themes; and 4) Cybertutor + Contact Group (Cy+C), the same as Cy plus brief proactive contact with a tutor. The impact of these interventions on student knowledge was measured with pre‐ and post assessments, and student skills in asking and counseling about oral health were assessed with an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Multivariate logistic regression models were applied to identify the odds ratios of scoring above Control's medians on the final assessment and the OSCE. In the results, Cy+C performed significantly better than Control on both the final assessment (OR 9.4; 95% CI 2.7–32.8) and the OSCE (OR 5.6; 95% CI 1.9–16.3) and outperformed all the other groups. The Cy+C group showed the most significant increase in knowledge and the best skills in asking and counseling about oral health.
Advancement of Women in Dental Education: Expanding Opportunities, Enriching the Pool
Authors: Sinkford Jeanne C. , Harrison Sonja , Brunson W. David , Valachovic Richard W.
Published: June 2020

In the recent past, we have seen both the dental student applicant and enrollment pools of women in the United States increase. There has been an increase in both women applicants and first‐year enrollees from the year 2000. The advancement of women in advanced educational programs and into dental faculty positions has likewise seen a trend of increase. The challenge to dental education is to ensure that the recruitment and advancement of women to careers in dental education and research in the future are consistent with their talent, expertise, and career expectations. Within this pool of women are our future leaders, deans, and researchers. As we consider future faculty needs for all dental faculty members, we must consider the unique needs of women who must balance their careers with other societal demands related to their gender.
Teledentistry‐Assisted, Affiliated Practice for Dental Hygienists: An Innovative Oral Health Workforce Model
Authors: Summerfelt Fred F.
Published: June 2020

The 2010 U.S. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) calls for training programs to develop mid‐level dental health care providers to work in areas with underserved populations. In 2004, legislation was passed in Arizona allowing qualified dental hygienists to enter into an affiliated practice relationship with a dentist to provide oral health care services for underserved populations without general or direct supervision in public health settings. In response, the Northern Arizona University (NAU) Dental Hygiene Department developed a teledentistry‐assisted, affiliated practice dental hygiene model that places a dental hygienist in the role of the mid‐level practitioner as part of a digitally linked oral health care team. Utilizing current technologies, affiliated practice dental hygienists can digitally acquire and transmit diagnostic data to a distant dentist for triage, diagnosis, and patient referral in addition to providing preventive services permitted within the dental hygiene scope of practice. This article provides information about the PPACA and the Arizona affiliated practice dental hygiene model, defines teledentistry, identifies the digital equipment used in NAU's teledentistry model, give an overview of NAU's teledentistry training, describes NAU's first teledentistry clinical experience, presents statistical analyses and evaluation of NAU students’ ability to acquire diagnostically efficacious digital data from remote locations, and summarizes details of remote applications of teledentistry‐assisted, affiliated practice dental hygiene workforce model successes.
Student Tutors for Problem‐Based Learning in Dental Hygiene: A Study of Tutor Actions
Authors: Moore Tricia , Kain Daniel L.
Published: June 2020

This case study illuminates contextual factors related to the tutor experience when senior students served as tutors for sophomore students in a problem‐based learning (PBL) course in a baccalaureate dental hygiene program. Data were collected using various sources and methods. Tutors and administrators were interviewed, those tutored completed an anonymous questionnaire, the tutorial process and tutor training sessions were observed, and related documents were examined. Data analysis included open and axial coding, creation of tutor profiles, and identification of patterns. Tutor training included experiencing the PBL student role, attending class, and weekly seminar sessions facilitated by a tutor supervisor. Analysis revealed that tutor behaviors could be distinguished by the nature of intended actions (e.g., telling, asking, clarifying, acknowledging), emphasis of comments (process, content, social), and facilitation style (directive, suggestive, empowering). Patterns in tutor behavior and attitudes emerged related to comfort or growth and persistence or lenience. Differences in tutor understanding and perception of their role and the purpose of PBL appeared to influence the role the tutor assumed. Other factors that influenced tutor behavior included tutor intentions, tutor training, and environmental factors (e.g., time). The study, incorporating Fishbein's integrative model, suggests points of influence on tutor behaviors.
Development of a Sustainable Community‐Based Dental Education Program
Authors: Piskorowski Wilhelm A. , Fitzgerald Mark , Mastey Jerry , Krell Rachel E.
Published: June 2020

Increasing the use of community‐based programs is an important trend in improving dental education to meet the needs of students and the public. To support this trend, understanding the history of programs that have established successful models for community‐based education is valuable for the creation and development of new programs. The community‐based education model of the University of Michigan School of Dentistry (UMSOD) offers a useful guide for understanding the essential steps and challenges involved in developing a successful program. Initial steps in program development were as follows: raising funds, selecting an outreach clinical model, and recruiting clinics to become partners. As the program developed, the challenges of creating a sustainable financial model with the highest educational value required the inclusion of new clinical settings and the creation of a unique revenue‐sharing model. Since the beginning of the community‐based program at UMSOD in 2000, the number of community partners has increased to twenty‐seven clinics, and students have treated thousands of patients in need. Fourth‐year students now spend a minimum of ten weeks in community‐based clinical education. The community‐based program at UMSOD demonstrates the value of service‐based education and offers a sustainable model for the development of future programs.
Assessing the Demand and Preferred Format of a Student Leadership Development Program at Pacific
Authors: Hammer Daniel A. , Nadershahi Nader A.
Published: June 2020

Dental students are future leaders of health care and the dental profession. The purpose of this study was to assess the interest in leadership development programs at the University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry and compare the results with similar studies. In April 2010, two surveys were administered. Of the 462 students enrolled, 58 percent completed the survey. Of the eighty‐one faculty members and administrators who attended the Spring Faculty Development Day, 85 percent completed the survey. This study confirmed claims that students find it most effective to learn leadership from mentors. Over 80 percent of the student respondents indicated that faculty mentorship would be the most beneficial aspect of a leadership development program. Sixty‐two percent of the faculty respondents said they would serve as mentors. Following mentorship, small‐group discussion (74 percent), public speaking (56 percent), dental society member mentorship (40 percent), panel discussions (39 percent), community outreach (39 percent), and capstone project (13 percent) followed in popularity. This study established a foundation to develop a pilot for the Dugoni Practical Leadership Initiative at Pacific based on the preferences of the participants in this survey. With more data and longitudinal studies, we will assess how these programs translate to leadership in dental school and after graduation.
Turkish Dental Students’ and Dentists’ Ability to Assess Gingival Health Status with DAAGS Software
Authors: Camgoz Melike , Gurgan Cem A. , Akkaya Murat
Published: June 2020

The aim of this study was to compare the ability of final‐year Turkish dental students and dentists to assess the level of gingival health status by using the Development of Ability to Assess Gingival Status (DAAGS) computer program. Forty‐eight students in their final year of dental education and 240 dentists participated in DAAGS tests in which they judged twenty‐four photos. The participants were organized into one group of students and five groups of dentists: those who graduated in the last five years, in the last six to ten years, in the last eleven to fifteen years, in the last sixteen to twenty years, and twenty and/or more years ago. A gold standard of each photo was shown to participants after they completed test 1; then, test 2 was conducted immediately. Participants were asked to evaluate the DAAGS by written survey. There were significant differences between the parameters of two tests for all groups. Significance levels differed for each group and both tests considering correct answers, reproducibility, irrelevant answers, and overall ability. The findings from this study indicated that the DAAGS software is easier for more recently graduated dentists to use.