Psychomotor Skills of Domestic and Internationally-Trained Dental Students in Pre-Clinical Dental Education
Creators: Rainu, Mandeep K
Publisher: name: University of Alberta Library
Year: 2024

<p>Background: Most dental schools in Canada and the United States offer qualifying dental programs to prepare internationally-trained dentists for obtaining dental licensure in the host country and address the estimated shortage of dental care providers in these jurisdictions. Evidence on their performance in these programs is scarce as previous research has mainly focused on predictors of academic and clinical performances and self-reported competencies. <br>
Objective: This thesis aimed to assess, both relatively and normatively, the psychomotor skills of domestic and internationally-trained dental students who were enrolled in an equivalent 9-week pre-clinical Fixed Prosthodontics course in the School of Dentistry at the University of Alberta. <br>
Methods: This cross-sectional study utilized assessment records, presented as percentages, of domestic and internationally-trained dental students maintained by the School of Dentistry at the University of Alberta from 2014 to 2020. Demographic characteristics were described using descriptive statistics. Psychomotor skills were assessed at the start and end of the Fixed Prosthodontics course and classified as extremely developed (≥90%), very developed (80-89%), developed (70-79%), slightly developed (60-69%), and underdeveloped (0.05). The majority of domestic dental students were under the age of 30 and predominantly male, contrasting with internationally-trained dental students who were mostly 30 years old and older, with a majority being females. Geographically, the primary origin for domestic students was North America, while the majority of internationally-trained dental students originated from Asia. At the start of the course, slightly developed or underdeveloped psychomotor skills were exhibited by approximately 48% (n=107) of domestic and 35% (n=23) of internationally-trained dental students. However, by the end of the course, around 16% (n=35) of domestic students and 20% (n=13) of internationally-trained dental students showed slightly developed or underdeveloped psychomotor skills. At the end of the course, either developed or very developed psychomotor skills were demonstrated by nearly 70% (n=155) of domestic and 70% (n=46) of internationally-trained dental students as well. A statistically significant difference was observed in the psychomotor skills between domestic (69.0 ± 9.8) and internationally-trained (72.7 ± 10.5) students at the start of the course (p=0.009), but not at the end of the course (p=0.285). Improved psychomotor skills over time were demonstrated by both groups, with notably greater improvement observed in domestic students (9.38 ± 12.7, p=0.003) compared to internationally-trained students (4.23 ± 11.6). At the start of the course, training needs were presented by around 86% (n=192) of domestic and 76% (n=50) of internationally-trained dental students (p=0.062). However, by the end of the course, these needs had diminished in domestic (50%, n=112) and internationally-trained (56%, n=37) dental students (p=0.404).<br>
Conclusion: Enhancing psychomotor skills was deemed necessary not only among domestic students but also among their internationally-trained counterparts, highlighting the need for additional pre-clinical training. Research is warranted to understand the interplay of factors influencing the progression of psychomotor skills in internationally-trained dental students. Tailored approaches may be necessary to ensure the effective development of psychomotor skills in student groups with varying learning needs. </p>

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