Bazen J, Paul D, Tennant M
The Centre for Rural and Remote Oral Health, The University of Western Australia, Crawley.
Aust Dent J. 2007 Jun;52(2):86-92. doi: 10.1111/j.1834-7819.2007.tb00470.x.
Indigenous oral health is widely acknowledged as paralleling the significant issues faced in general health. It is recognized that as part of the process of addressing these issues, practitioners need to be aware of the complex nature of working in an Indigenous social and cultural context, including issues beyond direct health care services. It is against this backdrop that collaborators from The University of Western Australia's (UWA) Centre for Rural and Remote Oral Health (CRROH) and Centre for Aboriginal Medical and Dental Health (CAMDH) developed a comprehensive, integrated Indigenous Oral Health Curriculum Framework for the Bachelor of Dental Science (BDSc) course. This development was based on the existing framework developed by the Committee of Deans of Australian Medical Schools (CDAMS) for medical education but was tailored to the specific issues and needs of oral health. Additional consultation with the Oral Health Centre of Western Australia (OHCWA), the School of Indigenous Studies (SIS) as well as Indigenous Australian groups occurred to ensure the development process was inclusive. The inclusion of an Indigenous Oral Health Curriculum Framework in the BDSc will enable UWA dental graduates to practise dentistry in a culturally appropriate manner. The framework provides the structure for students to develop and demonstrate an understanding of Indigenous histories, cultures and social experiences and how these impact on Indigenous peoples' health. It is anticipated that this will foster more positive and culturally secure patient-practitioner interactions between UWA dental graduates and Indigenous Australians, thereby making it more likely for Indigenous Australians to present for treatment. The increased awareness of Indigenous oral health issues will hopefully encourage more graduates to become involved in the treatment of Indigenous peoples. The combination of these factors could lead to an improvement in oral health outcomes for Australia's Indigenous peoples and a concomitant positive impact on the general health of Indigenous Australians.
原住民口腔健康被广泛认为与总体健康所面临的重大问题相类似。人们认识到，作为解决这些问题过程的一部分，从业者需要意识到在原住民社会和文化背景下工作的复杂性，包括直接医疗服务之外的问题。正是在这样的背景下，西澳大利亚大学（UWA）农村和偏远地区口腔健康中心（CRROH）与原住民医学和牙科健康中心（CAMDH）的合作人员为牙科学士（BDSc）课程制定了一个全面、综合的原住民口腔健康课程框架。这一框架的制定基于澳大利亚医学院院长委员会（CDAMS）为医学教育制定的现有框架，但针对口腔健康的具体问题和需求进行了调整。此外，还与西澳大利亚口腔健康中心（OHCWA）、原住民研究学院（SIS）以及澳大利亚原住民群体进行了磋商，以确保制定过程具有包容性。在BDSc课程中纳入原住民口腔健康课程框架将使UWA的牙科毕业生能够以符合文化习惯的方式从事牙科工作。该框架为学生提供了一个结构，使其能够培养并展示对原住民历史、文化和社会经历的理解，以及这些因素如何影响原住民的健康。预计这将促进UWA牙科毕业生与澳大利亚原住民之间建立更积极、更具文化安全感的医患互动，从而使澳大利亚原住民更有可能前来接受治疗。对原住民口腔健康问题认识的提高有望鼓励更多毕业生参与到对原住民的治疗中。这些因素的综合作用可能会改善澳大利亚原住民的口腔健康状况，并对澳大利亚原住民的总体健康产生相应的积极影响。
