King's College London Study Student services Research & Innovation More Search News Centre News Spotlight on research 26 November 2021 King's wins for Digital innovation at Times Higher Awards Last night, King's won the Technological or Digital Innovation of the Year trophy at the seventeenth annual Times Higher Education (THE) Awards. Students using haptic technology The THE Awards are the biggest celebration in the Higher Education calendar, attracting hundreds of entries from individuals, teams and institutions from all corners of the UK and, for the first time this year, Ireland too. The team from King's Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences won the award for innovatively using simulation and the latest technologies to help continue providing world-class education and training in the field of dentistry when the pandemic hit. Using advanced “phantom-head” dental simulators and virtual haptic machines that simulate physical touch, King’s Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences became the first in the world to integrate clinical digital learning across all its facilities. This enabled King’s to graduate fully qualified dentists when other UK dental schools had to repeat the academic year. More than 850 dentistry students have already benefited from the digital clinical workflow, practising Covid-secure dental surgery using the simulators, with the resulting scans carefully analysed before they practise on real patients. These innovations enabled King’s and its partner NHS trusts to continue providing essential oral care across south London throughout the pandemic, and have future-proofed its training of oral care clinicians. The initiative is informing practice at other dental training institutions and trusts. This is wonderful recognition of the huge team effort that went into the innovative and integrated use of technology to support student learning and enable their timely progression into the healthcare workforce. – Professor Michael Escudier, Interim Executive Dean, Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences THE editor John Gill said: “The Times Higher Education Awards have been recognising outstanding achievements in UK higher education for the best part of two decades, but never before have they shone a light on the level of effort and creativity that was demanded of universities throughout the 2019-20 academic year. The response required, and delivered, in the face of a global pandemic was unique, and many of the awards submissions reflected those unprecedented circumstances. “But universities’ great strength is not just that they respond to circumstances, but that they also provide a level of constancy at times of uncertainty and change. 2019-20 was not just a year of pandemic disruption, it was also a year in which incredible achievements were made in all the areas you would hope and expect: world-changing research, brilliant learning and teaching, international and industrial engagement, and the full gamut of activities that run through universities like words through a stick of rock.” In this story Michael Escudier Interim Executive Dean, Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences Jonathan San Diego Senior Lecturer in Educational Technology & Health Informatics Kim Piper Dean for Education Rupert Austin Senior Clinical Lecturer and Honorary Consultant in Prosthodontics Health Search Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences Connect with King’s College London Facebook Twitter Instagram LinkedIn YouTube Study at King’s Degree courses Postgraduate taught Postgraduate research International students Summer schools Student experience Information for New students Current students Staff Alumni Facilities Student Services Library services Accommodation IT Academic calendar Discover King’s News Centre Events Students union Visit King’s Job opportunities Contact us +44 (0)20 7836 5454 King's College London Strand London WC2R 2LS United Kingdom Terms & conditions Privacy policy Modern slavery statement Accessibility Sitemap Cookies We Care About Your Privacy We and our partners store and/or access information on a device, such as unique IDs in cookies to process personal data. You may accept or manage your choices by clicking below, including your right to object where legitimate interest is used, or at any time in the privacy policy page. These choices will be signaled to our partners and will not affect browsing data. We and our partners process data to provide: Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. List of Partners (vendors) I Accept Show Purposes