Despite increasing evidence that oral health is a critical component of overall health, international research reveals current undergraduate curricula in oral health is inadequate.
A survey of academics in medical, nursing and pharmacy schools in universities across Australia and New Zealand, Canada, US, Europe and Asia, found 59.6 per cent rated their current undergraduate curricula in oral health as inadequate.
“This study provides the first formal documentation that the curricula of non-dental health care professions, specifically in medicine, nursing and pharmacy, do not contain adequate content related to oral-systemic health,” the authors said.
Published in the Journal of Dental Education, survey results showed 53.7 per cent of the respondents believed the inclusion of an oral-systemic science was “somewhat important.”
Just over half of the respondents also reported there were “no or very few requirements” at the present time to incorporate oral health education into predoctoral/undergraduate curriculum of students in medicine, nursing, and pharmacy.
The majority of students in these programs had not been instructed to examine the mouth, nor were they being taught how to perform an oral examination.
“However, medical and nursing students seem to receive this teaching more often than do students of pharmacy, which would be expected for clinical disciplines,” the authors said.
In contrast, surprising results showed pharmacy scored higher on soft tissues of the oral cavity than nursing.
“A possible explanation is that pharmacists are often in a position of counselling patients for relief of pain or palliation of oral soft tissue lesions,” the authors said.
The authors said a range of obstacles could impede the introduction of curricula focusing on oral health, including lack of interest among faculty, curriculum and a lack of accreditation standards and professional requirements related to oral health.
Despite increasing evidence that oral health is a critical component of overall health, international research reveals current undergraduate curricula in oral health is inadequate.
A survey of academics in medical, nursing and pharmacy schools in universities across Australia and New Zealand, Canada, US, Europe and Asia, found 59.6 per cent rated their current undergraduate curricula in oral health as inadequate.
“This study provides the first formal documentation that the curricula of non-dental health care professions, specifically in medicine, nursing and pharmacy, do not contain adequate content related to oral-systemic health,” the authors said.
Published in the Journal of Dental Education, survey results showed 53.7 per cent of the respondents believed the inclusion of an oral-systemic science was “somewhat important.”
Just over half of...