Dental student’s perception, attitude and educational experience in treating patients with special healthcare needs at undergraduate level

Abstract

Aim  To assess Libyan undergraduate dentistry students’ familiarity, comfort, attitudes towards treating patients with special healthcare needs (PSHCN), their opinions on instruction quality, and their perceptions of treatment needs and challenges in providing dental care to children with special needs.

Methods  A self-administered questionnaire on special need dentistry (SND) was given to 239 fourth-year undergraduate dental students at the Faculty of Dentistry in Benghazi, Libya, as part of a cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study that took place between February and August 2022.

Results  Most students lacked a comprehensive understanding of SND definitions and expressed discomfort in managing patients with such conditions, 59.4% of dental students lack knowledge about intellectual disabilities. The highest rate of dental students who never exposed themselves to intellectual disabilities and visual and hearing impairment were 60.3% and 54.8%, respectively. Most students agreed that they should have received didactic and clinical training at the undergraduate level, and they felt their undergraduate training in SND was insufficient. Respondents were less motivated regarding clinical and behavioral management, facilities, didactic training, and degree of collaboration, but more motivated to treat PSHCN if they were compensated, had more time, had experience with oral sedation, and had hospital privileges.

Conclusions  The study suggests that dental practitioners and students should enhance their understanding and awareness of the oral health requirements of PSHCN. In addition, a significant portion of students indicated a desire to pursue graduate study in this field of dentistry, even though they had little exposure to it during their undergraduate studies.

Keywords
Dental Care for persons with disabilities; Oral health; Students, dental; Perception