Paediatric dentistry experience of the first cohort of students to graduate from Dublin Dental School and Hospital under the new curriculum

Abstract

AIM: To assess undergraduate clinical experience in Paediatric Dentistry in students graduating under a new curriculum. METHODS: An audit using logbooks completed by 34 students for all patients for whom they had provided treatment in the university paediatric dentistry clinic. RESULTS: A total of 177 child patients had received treatment from the students, age range 2-8 years. Students had performed an average of 13 restorative techniques. Sixty-eight percent had provided stainless steel crowns and 71% at least one pulpotomy for a primary tooth. All students had provided fissure sealants. Eighteen had carried out extractions and 8 had provided treatment for fractured incisors on this clinic. CONCLUSIONS: The cohort of students included had a wide range of experience of paediatric dentistry which compared favourably with accepted guidelines. A relative lack of experience of dental extractions currently remains a problem.