Increasing predoctoral dental students' motivations to specialize in prosthodontics.
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This study provides data about factors that influence dental students' decision of which specialty to pursue and describes program changes in prosthodontics designed to expand student interest in a prosthodontics training program. Of 176 current and recently graduated students at Harvard School of Dental Medicine, 167 responded to the e-mail survey for a 94.9 percent response rate. Using the Pearson chi-square analysis, we analyzed nine factors to determine their contribution to these students' choice of specialty. Two factors, lecture and faculty/mentoring, were highly significant (p<0.006) regarding impact on the students' introductory experience with prosthodontics. When choosing a specialty, 44 percent of all students ranked "enjoyment of providing the specialty service" as the most important factor. Students wishing to specialize in prosthodontics, however, ranked four significant factors: enjoyment of providing the specialty service (p<0.037, p<0.057); faculty influence (p<0.0002, p<0.0001); length of program (p<0.039, p<0.006); and cost of program (p<0.023, p<0.004). Respondents also ranked the nine American Dental Association-recognized specialties regarding their perceptions of future salary and impact on the dental profession. They ranked prosthodontics fourth for future salary and fifth for impact on the profession. At the same time that this study was being conducted, key changes were being made in the graduate prosthodontics program; those appear to have had a positive impact on students' interest in pursuing prosthodontics as a specialty. (+info)
Predictors of academic performance for applicants to an international dental studies program in the United States.
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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. (+info)
Early in contrast to recent methods to evaluate masticatory function in implant patients.
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Learning curves: what do dental students learn from repeated practice of clinical procedures?
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It is generally accepted that repetition of procedures is necessary to develop clinical skill in dentistry. Although there is a rich empirical research tradition in medicine establishing competency levels for new procedures, investigations of the shape of learning curves for clinical techniques are rare in dental education. Data were reviewed from three classes (n=465) of students at the University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry in seventeen clinical skills in five departments for which test case (independent performance) data were available. It was hypothesized that a learning curve would be observed with gradually rising scores as a function of amount of repeated test case work and general practice experience. Other factors, such as faculty ratings and clinical GPA, could be expected to modify this curve. No evidence was found that test case performance was affected by number of previous test cases, number of practice (ungraded) procedures previously completed, faculty ratings of technical skill in the discipline by quarter, faculty ratings of patient management and of clinical judgment competencies, overall clinical GPA, and performance on initial licensure examinations. The absence of a pattern showing that amount of prior experience improves clinical performance raises questions about the practice of setting "requirements" for graduation and challenges dental educators to better explain the presumed relationship between practice and performance and the validity of clinical evaluation of performance based exclusively on the objective technical quality of work samples. The literature on learning curves and on competency-based education offer alternative insights into what students are actually learning but schools are failing to measure in the clinical experience. (+info)
Impact of a prior medical degree on students' dental school performance in Innsbruck, Austria.
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The purpose of this study was to identify the performance differences between two groups of Austrian dental students (one with a prior medical degree and one without a medical degree) during their dental school training and final dental licensure examination. A specific aim was to determine if having a medical degree is a predictive factor for dental students' scores on the Austrian Dental Admission Test (Austrian DAT), performance in the dental clinic, and scores on final exam. The study consisted of a retrospective analysis of 122 students (thirty-nine with a medical degree and eighty-three without a medical degree) who were enrolled in the Dental Clinic at Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria, between 2001 and 2006. Three performance categories were considered: Austrian DAT results, clinical performance after the first clinical year in dental school, and performance on the final dental licensure examination. Information on students' age, gender, and previous medical degree was collected from official records. Analyses with student's t-test and Pearson's chi-square test revealed that the students with a medical degree had significantly higher Austrian DAT total test scores, grade point averages after the first clinical year, and scores on the final exam. Additionally, those students had significantly better performance on the final exam in prosthodontics and oral and maxillofacial surgery. The linear regression analysis showed that a medical degree had an independent effect on average scores on the final exam, age, and Austrian DAT test scores, while gender showed no statistically significant effect. Overall, the study found that dental students with a prior medical degree had significantly higher Austrian DAT total test scores and performed significantly better in the first clinical year and on the final exam than those without a prior medical degree. (+info)
Effect of a procedural video CD and study guide on the practical fixed prosthodontic performance of Iranian dental students.
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Dental students in programs around the world typically pass preclinical courses before entering the clinic and working on actual patients. Since fixed prosthodontics is a preclinical course that requires a great deal of effort, students may experience a substantial amount of stress that may affect their self-confidence and/or clinical performance. In this study, an instructional video CD (VCD) and study guide depicting the step-by-step procedures involved in a metal-ceramic tooth preparation and provisional crown fabrication was prepared. Students at the Faculty of Dentistry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, were divided randomly into two groups. Group A students trained as usual with live patients, and Group B students were given a copy of the VCD and study guide following a lecture. The students in Group B were encouraged to read the study guide and watch the VCD after live demonstrations. Then, both groups practiced individually on mannequins. At the end of the course, the students completed a sixteen-item questionnaire about their stress level, self-confidence, and knowledge base. The results showed that the students exposed to the extra media performed significantly better on some practical phases, e.g., laboratory procedures. A moderate, insignificant correlation was detected between exposure to media and decreasing the students' stress and self-esteem. We concluded that supplementary teaching aids such as a VCD and study guide may improve the clinical performance of dental students to some extent, but the live demonstration is still preferred by students. (+info)
Role of colors in prosthodontics: application of color science in restorative dentistry.
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A multi-centered epidemiological study evaluating the reliability of the treatment difficulty indices developed by the Japan Prosthodontic Society.
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