A survey of the quality and quantity of Special Care Dentistry teaching, including Gerodontology, in dental schools of the United Kingdom and Ireland

Gordon, F., Morgan, Maria Zeta ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5182-7222 and Thompson, Shelagh 2009. A survey of the quality and quantity of Special Care Dentistry teaching, including Gerodontology, in dental schools of the United Kingdom and Ireland. Journal of Disability and Oral Health 10 (1) , pp. 3-10.

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Abstract

Aim and objectives: To investigate the Special Care Dentistry educational programmes in undergraduate dental schools of the UK and Ireland, and establish whether courses are adequate in fulfilling the learning outcomes in the General Dental Council (GDC) document 'The First Five Years - A Framework for Undergraduate Dental Education' and statements made by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) for Higher Education 'Benchmarking Academic Standards: Dentistry'. Design: A postal questionnaire survey of 15 dental schools across the UK and Republic of Ireland. Questionnaires were distributed to 1,220 final year students and 15 staff who co-ordinate Special Care Dentistry teaching at each school. The questions explored areas such as teaching methodology and student's clinical confidence with Special Care patients. Results: Ten dental schools returned student questionnaires and nine returned staff questionnaires. Most did not fulfil GDC or QAA requirements. The amount of didactic teaching and clinical experience varied considerably. Many undergraduates felt they did not receive adequate teaching and 87.9% did not gain sufficient clinical experience. Undergraduates felt ill prepared to treat certain groups of Special Care patients, especially those with mental health problems. Of the students who considered they had enough hands-on experience, only 22.9% felt 'confident' to carry out treatment. Conclusions: The requirements of the GDC and the QAA are not being met. More clinical experience is required in most dental schools whilst in some schools, undergraduates receive none. Special Care patients are increasingly dentally motivated and many dental undergraduates are not adequately prepared in skills or attitude to provide high quality care.

Item Type:	Article
Status:	Published
Schools:	Dentistry
Publisher:	Stephen Hancocks Ltd
ISSN:	1470-8558
Last Modified:	18 Oct 2022 13:54
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/15865

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