Graduating dentists’ perceptions about their professional competence in Finland and Lithuania

Abstract

Aims Efforts to harmonise dental education in Europe have been put into action by the Association for Dental Education in Europe (ADEE). The aim of the study was to explore graduating dentists’ perceptions about their professional readiness for clinical work in Finland and Lithuania. Materials and methods The survey targeted fifth‐year dental students at the University of Oulu and the University of Turku in Finland, and at the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania (Lithuanian and international students) in 2016‐2017. The competences were evaluated in the questionnaire in 21 dental procedures based on ADEE competences by options: “I’d manage well,” “I’d need more training” or “It would not quite succeed.” The option “I’d manage well” was chosen in the analyses. Results Students felt that they were most competent in producing and maintaining accurate patient records (91.9%), implementing sterilisation and hygiene in dental practice (91.3%) and working with other members of dental team and health profession (90.0%). The largest differences between Finnish and Lithuanian students were in designing and adjusting occlusal splints (87.0% vs. 14.3%) and in undertaking subgingival scaling (95.7% vs. 57.1%). The biggest differences between Lithuanian and international students were in identifying (and treating) abnormal and anxiety‐related patient (73.1% vs. 25.5%) and implementing tobacco cessation (65.3% vs. 31.9%). Conclusions The graduating dental students in Finland and Lithuania manage well in most of the clinical procedures based on the ADEE competences. The students were most confident when dealing with tasks that are common in dental practice.

Work situation and prospects of recently graduated dentists in the Netherlands

“…This is in line with the observation that the obstacles for new dentists do not concern the regular treatments. 15 , 16 Moreover, the difficulties of being responsible for clinical choices were observed in other inexperienced medical professionals. 32 This might be due to the perceived sentiment of lacking experience with materials and methods that are not used at the dental school.…”

“…Studies in other countries show that undergraduate dental students desire to focus on basic skills that occur frequently in daily practice and are covered extensively in training. 15 , 16 De Rijk and Kreulen argue that young dentists have many competences, but limited clinical experience. 17 In the first years after graduation, dentists need to broaden their experience.…”

Students at Saarland University dental school—A survey on their background and curriculum perception

“…Indicating confidence in routine dental procedures, 1,7 the majority of students intended to work as general practitioner following graduation. However, this response may also be obscured by the fact that sub‐specialisation is not yet well accepted in the German dental community.…”

“…Following long periods of preparation and discussion, new legislation restructuring the undergraduate curriculum in German dental schools will come into effect in fall 2020. Besides harmonisation of dental education in Europe, 1 five main goals govern the new curriculum, which are interdisciplinary study, problem‐ and symptom‐based learning, early patient contact, science‐based education and communication training 2…”

“…Early exposure to self‐dependent patient treatment as already implemented in the current curriculum is a unique feature of studying dentistry, which raises several questions. These start with appropriately weighted, reliable and valid student selection methods 3 also taking into account the feminisation of the workforce in dentistry 4,5 and range up to the graduates' confidence and preparedness for their professional life 1,6,7 …”