Department of Periodontology, School of Dentistry, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, South Korea.
Department of Humanities in Dentistry & Research Institute of Oral Science, Gangneung-Wonju National University, Gangneung, South Korea.
Gerodontology. 2023 Jun;40(2):238-243. doi: 10.1111/ger.12647. Epub 2022 Jul 25.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the curriculum of geriatric dentistry for undergraduates in Korean dental schools.
For development purposes, it was necessary to compare geriatric dentistry education programmes in South Korea to programmes in the United States and Europe.
The most recent curriculum and related information on geriatric dentistry at the undergraduate level in all 11 dental schools in South Korea were collected by both official letter and e-mail. A symposium for gathering expert opinions to improve geriatric dentistry education in South Korea was also held. The collected data were analysed, and the expert opinions at the symposium were summarised.
Six of 11 schools had a didactic course as compulsory and three schools as elective. The course was usually conducted as a form of integrated lectures, and the level of standardisation of lecture content was very low. There were no topics for older people who cannot access dental clinics due to functional frailty or disability. No dental school-affiliated hospitals had an independent department for geriatric dentistry. No schools provided clinical teaching for geriatric dentistry. There were no outreach programmes for geriatric dentistry.
The educational curriculum for geriatric dentistry in South Korea was insufficient to cope with social and demographic changes. Curriculum content should include clinical practice education and needs to be focused on frail and dependent older adult patients. An essential educational curriculum and core competency for geriatric dentistry should be prepared.
本研究旨在调查韩国牙科学院本科生老年牙科课程的情况。
为了发展的需要，有必要将韩国的老年牙科教育计划与美国和欧洲的计划进行比较。
通过官方信函和电子邮件收集了韩国 11 所牙科学院最新的本科老年牙科课程及相关信息。还举办了一次研讨会，以收集专家意见，改善韩国的老年牙科教育。对收集到的数据进行了分析，并总结了研讨会的专家意见。
11 所学校中有 6 所学校开设了必修的理论课程，3 所学校开设了选修课程。该课程通常以综合讲座的形式进行，讲座内容的标准化程度非常低。没有针对因功能虚弱或残疾而无法前往牙科诊所的老年人的课程。没有任何一家牙科医院附属的医院设有独立的老年牙科部门。没有学校提供老年牙科的临床教学。也没有老年牙科的外展计划。
韩国的老年牙科教育课程不足以应对社会和人口结构的变化。课程内容应包括临床实践教育，并应侧重于体弱和依赖的老年患者。应制定老年牙科的基本教育课程和核心能力。
