Ahmad M S, Razak I A, Borromeo G L
Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Malaysia; University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Eur J Dent Educ. 2015 Feb;19(1):44-52. doi: 10.1111/eje.12101. Epub 2014 Apr 30.
A compromised oral health condition amongst patients with special health care needs (SHCN) has been associated with the reluctance and shortage of skills of dental professionals in managing such patients. Lack of training and experience at the undergraduate level are reported barriers to the provision of care for this patient cohort. Undergraduate education therefore, plays an important role in producing professionals with the knowledge, skills and positive attitude in treating patients with SHCN. This study aims to determine the level of knowledge, comfort and attitudes of Malaysian undergraduate dental students towards caring for patients with SHCN, as well as their perception on education in this field. A self-administered questionnaire was administered in the classroom style to final year undergraduate dental students in Malaysian public dental schools. Most students were aware of Special Needs Dentistry (SND) as a specialty after being informed by academic staff. The majority of the students demonstrated poor knowledge in defining SND and felt uncomfortable providing care for such patients. They perceived their undergraduate training in SND as inadequate with most students agreeing that they should receive didactic and clinical training at undergraduate level. A high percentage of students also expressed interest in pursuing postgraduate education in this area of dentistry despite the lack of educational exposure during undergraduate years. The study supports a need for educational reform to formulate a curriculum that is more patient-centred, with earlier clinical exposure in various clinical settings for students to treat patients with special health care needs, applying the concept of holistic care in a variable clinical condition.
有特殊医疗需求（SHCN）患者的口腔健康状况不佳，这与牙科专业人员在管理此类患者时的不情愿和技能短缺有关。据报道，本科阶段缺乏培训和经验是为这一患者群体提供护理的障碍。因此，本科教育在培养具备治疗SHCN患者的知识、技能和积极态度的专业人员方面发挥着重要作用。本研究旨在确定马来西亚牙科本科学生对护理SHCN患者的知识水平、舒适度和态度，以及他们对该领域教育的看法。采用课堂发放问卷的方式，对马来西亚公立牙科学校的本科最后一年学生进行了一项自填式问卷调查。大多数学生在得到学术人员的告知后，了解到特殊需求牙科（SND）是一个专业领域。大多数学生在定义SND方面表现出知识匮乏，并且在为这类患者提供护理时感到不自在。他们认为本科阶段在SND方面的培训不足，大多数学生同意他们应该在本科阶段接受理论和临床培训。尽管本科阶段缺乏相关教育接触，但仍有很高比例的学生表示有兴趣在牙科这一领域攻读研究生学位。该研究支持进行教育改革，以制定一个更以患者为中心的课程，让学生在本科阶段更早地接触各种临床环境，以便在不同临床情况下应用整体护理概念，治疗有特殊医疗需求的患者。
