Journal of dental education
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Comparative Study
Mentoring of dental and dental hygiene faculty: a case study.
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 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.
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Comparative Study
Evaluation of stress in final-year Saudi dental students using salivary cortisol as a biomarker.
The aims of this study were to identify the perceived sources of stress in final-year dental students studying in a private dental school in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, using a modified dental environmental stress (DES) scale and to correlate these findings, at various times in the semester, with the level of acute stress measured with salivary cortisol as a biomarker. A total of forty final-year students were administered a modified DES questionnaire consisting of twenty-five questions to determine the perceived causes of stress. ⋯ Baseline cortisol levels were significantly lower than the cortisol levels in the clinic, and both these values were significantly lower than the salivary cortisol levels before the examination (p<0.001). Comparison of cortisol levels to the perceived sources of stress and demographic data collected showed that certain discrepancies may exist between the perceived and actual stress felt by dental students at different times in the academic semester.
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Comparative Study
Smoking cessation counseling in dentistry: attitudes of Nigerian dentists and dental students.
The study was aimed at assessing the awareness, attitude, practices, willingness, and perceived barriers of dental students and dentists in Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Lagos, Nigeria, in relation to smoking cessation in the dental care setting. An anonymous self-administered questionnaire that contained questions relating to attitudes, views, and perceived barriers to smoking cessation activities in the dental clinic was hand-delivered to all dentists and clinical dental students in 2007. One hundred and thirty-six respondents took part in the study (response rate=81.9 percent). ⋯ Perceived barriers reported were lack of time (88 percent), lack of necessary materials (81 percent), and lack of knowledge of smoking cessation (74 percent). However, 81 percent of the respondents said they are willing to undergo training in tobacco use cessation. Since most of the dentists and dental students had poor attitudes and negative perceptions of smoking cessation activities, possibly due to lack of training and resources to carry it out in the clinics, there is need to include smoking cessation training in the dental curriculum in Nigeria.
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Distance education offers an opportunity to catalyze sweeping curricular change. Faculty members of the University of Michigan Dental Hygiene Program spent eighteen months researching best practices, planning outcomes and courses, and implementing an e-learning (online) dental hygiene degree completion program. ⋯ The models and best practices on which this program was founded are described. Also provided is a framework of strategies for development, including the utilization of backward course design, which can be used in many areas of professional education.
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The purpose of this study was to determine the nonmedical use of prescription attention deficit disorder (ADD) stimulant medication among dental and dental hygiene students. A questionnaire was used to examine demographic information, student experiences, and perceptions of prescription stimulant medication and to determine if students used a prescription stimulant nonmedically. In 2008, 401 surveys were mailed to dental education institutions in the south-central region of the United States, and 243 surveys (61 percent) were returned. ⋯ Even though 74 percent of the students reported being stressed, chi-square analysis found no significant association between nonmedical use of ADD stimulant medication and stress level (p=0.585). Sixteen percent of the students surveyed felt it was easy to obtain stimulant medication for nonmedical use at their school, and 17 percent thought it was a problem within their institution. These results may help administrators and faculty members become aware of potential problems with the misuse of ADD stimulant medication.