Fehrenbacher Jennifer E
Kinney College of Nursing and Health Professions, Dental Assisting and Dental Hygiene Department, University of Southern Indiana, Evansville, Indiana, USA.
J Dent Educ. 2025 Jul;89(7):1084-1096. doi: 10.1002/jdd.13782. Epub 2024 Nov 19.
Clinical instructors are responsible for educating dental hygiene students in the patient care environment. While these instructors have experience in the dental field, they often do not have pedagogical training, or a background, related to education. The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of dental professionals who transitioned from clinical practitioners to clinical instructors at one US dental hygiene program in 2022. As the theoretical underpinning for this study, andragogy offered a lens through which to tailor the creation of training opportunities distinctive to the needs of adult learners. The central research question for this study was, "What are the experiences of dentists and dental hygienists who have transitioned from clinical practice to the role of clinical instructors?" The subquestions guiding this study were "What forms of education, professional development, or support are necessary to help guide the transition from healthcare professional to clinical instructor?" and "How can this education, professional development, or support be delivered to clinical instructors in a way that meets their needs as adult learners?"
A transcendental phenomenological approach enabled a deeper understanding of participants' experiences and their thought processes as they transitioned from clinical practitioners to their roles as clinical instructors. Purposeful sampling was used to recruit dentists and dental hygienists who served as clinical instructors in a dental hygiene program at a midwestern public university. Data collection was triangulated using individual interviews, photograph journals, and a virtual focus group. Data analysis was conducted using epoché, phenomenological reduction, imaginative variance, and synthesis of the structural and textural descriptions gathered during data collection.
A total of 13 clinical faculty members participated in all three parts of the study. Five themes were derived from the data collection: life responsibilities, challenges faced, training received, training needed, and training delivery preferences. These themes helped to create an understanding of the phenomena of transitioning from clinical practitioner to clinical instructor as the participants experienced it in addition to training delivery preferences.
The study's findings highlighted the importance of training dentists and dental hygienists to become clinical instructors while using andragogical principles. IRB approval: This project received Institutional Review Board (IRB) exemption from Liberty University (IRB-FY22-23-285).
临床教师负责在患者护理环境中教育口腔卫生专业学生。虽然这些教师在牙科领域有经验，但他们通常没有与教育相关的教学培训或背景。这项质性现象学研究的目的是探索2022年在美国一个口腔卫生项目中从临床从业者转变为临床教师的牙科专业人员的经历。作为本研究的理论基础，成人教育学提供了一个视角，通过它可以根据成人学习者的需求定制培训机会的创建。本研究的核心研究问题是：“从临床实践转变为临床教师角色的牙医和口腔卫生师有哪些经历？”指导本研究的子问题是：“帮助引导从医疗保健专业人员转变为临床教师需要哪些形式的教育、专业发展或支持？”以及“如何以满足他们作为成人学习者需求的方式向临床教师提供这种教育、专业发展或支持？”
一种先验现象学方法能够更深入地理解参与者从临床从业者转变为临床教师角色时的经历和思维过程。采用目的抽样法招募在一所中西部公立大学的口腔卫生项目中担任临床教师的牙医和口腔卫生师。通过个人访谈、照片日志和虚拟焦点小组对数据收集进行三角验证。使用悬置、现象学还原、想象变异以及对数据收集过程中收集到的结构和纹理描述进行综合分析。
共有13名临床教师参与了研究的所有三个部分。从数据收集中得出了五个主题：生活责任、面临的挑战、接受的培训、需要的培训以及培训交付偏好。这些主题有助于理解参与者经历的从临床从业者转变为临床教师的现象以及培训交付偏好。
研究结果强调了运用成人教育原则培训牙医和口腔卫生师成为临床教师的重要性。机构审查委员会批准：本项目获得了自由大学机构审查委员会（IRB）的豁免（IRB - FY22 - 23 - 285）。
