Since the 1970s, research has shown negative trends in teachers delivering inconsistent (uncoordinated) instructional guidance and inaccurate (uncalibrated) grading outcomes among medical and dental students, which were harmful teaching practices directly impeding student learning progressions. The problem addressed by this study was that many…

The inclusion of First Nations health curricula in programs is critical for the development of culturally safe graduates, however, less is known about how to embed content into curriculum in ways that reflect best practice and pedagogy. The aim of this scoping review was to describe methods and processes of First Nations health curriculum…

When the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching was established in 1905, universities in Canada and Newfoundland were eligible for participation in a pension fund for faculty and grants to universities. Canadian universities were quick to seek access to the Carnegie pension plan and for support from the Corporation. Access to both…

Minority students have traditionally been underrepresented in dental schools, which is why enrichment and pipeline programs aimed at helping minority students are necessary. That reality is reflected in their woeful underrepresentation among practicing dentists. Hispanics made up only 5.8 percent of practicing dentists in 2011, according to the…

Attracting and retaining strong faculty members in dental schools have long been challenges in the United States. Faced with an emerging crisis in the availability and quality of dental educators, many researchers have focused on analyzing data and trends related to this subject. Even though there are substantial studies that provide a picture of…

Dental caries is a disease process, one that will not be eliminated by tooth repair alone. Caries is the most prevalent disease of children and the primary reason for most restorative dental visits in both adults and children. A risk-based approach to managing caries targets those in greatest jeopardy for contracting the disease and provides…

Tooth decay in children is on the rise in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), tooth decay rose 4 percent in the two-to five-year-old age group in the last four years. These statistics are disturbing to dental professionals because of the ability to prevent approximately 85 percent of tooth decay.…

Currently, there is need for change in the way that dental schools in the United States educate their students to keep pace with the rapidly changing nature of the profession and to better address societal needs. Despite a well-documented change agenda put forth by individual authors and agencies both within and outside of dental education,…

A survey of the 60 American dental schools was conducted to determine the extent of existing and planned programs in geriatric dentistry. All respondents indicated that they either conduct a gerontology program or plan to conduct one in the future; various educational approaches were reported. (MLW)

Context: Migrant and seasonal farmworkers are recognized as a medically underserved population, yet little information on need, access, and services is available--particularly with regard to oral health care. Purpose: This study describes the facilities, services, staffing, and patient characteristics of US dental clinics serving migrant and…

Dentistry has evolved from medicine and more especially from the surgical aspect of what is now called medicine. Until the sixteenth century, physic and surgery were separate professions and what we now call dentistry was a part of surgery rather than of physic. For centuries physic was a calling of greater dignity than surgery. Since the major…

A survey of dental schools revealed little standardization of student requirements for dental radiography in the United States. There was a high degree of variability as to what constituted a full radiographic survey, which has implications concerning the maximum limits to patient exposure to radiation. (Author/MLW)

The growing complexity in the dental profession has contributed to the diversity of current specialities and practice modes. Dental students are seen to need time to explore this diversity of opportunities and plan for their futures. A survey of career assistance programs in U.S. dental schools is reported. (MLW)

Two hours of tobacco instructions were incorporated into the baccalaureate dental hygiene curricula in a university in the Northwestern United States. Prior to graduation, all senior students were invited to complete anonymously a questionnaire surveying attitudes and clinical skills in providing tobacco services to their clinic patients. Twenty…

Results of a survey of all U.S. and Canadian medical schools concerning the extent and nature of instruction in dental topics for medical students also revealed the perceived importance of including such instruction in the undergraduate medical curriculum and barriers to teaching dental topics to medical students. (MSE)