Keywords
dentistry, education, medicine, COVID-19, coronavirus, crisis, public health, pandemic
Abstract
Purpose/Objectives:The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemicarguably represents the worst public health crisis of the 21stcentury. However,no empirical study currently exists in the literature that examines the impact ofthe COVID-19 pandemic on dental education. This study evaluated the impactof COVID-19 on dental education and dental students’ experience.Methods:An anonymous online survey was administrated to professionaldental students that focused on their experiences related to COVID-19. Thesurvey included questions about student demographics, protocols for schoolreopening and student perceptions of institutional responses, student concerns,and psychological impacts.Results:Among the 145 respondents, 92.4% were pre-doctoral dental studentsand 7.6% were orthodontic residents; 48.2% were female and 12.6% students livedalone during the school closure due to the pandemic. Students’ age ranged from23 to 39 years. Younger students expressed more concerns about their emotionalhealth (P=0.01). In terms of the school’s overall response to COVID-19, 73.1%students thought it was effective. The majority (83%) of students believed thatsocial distancing in school can minimize the development of COVID-19. Ingeneral, students felt that clinical education suffered after transitioning to onlinebut responded more positively about adjustments to other online curricularcomponents.Conclusions:The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted dental edu-cation. Our findings indicate that students are experiencing increased levelsof stress and feel their clinical education has suffered. Most students appear comfortable with technology adaptations for didactic curriculum and favormasks, social distancing, and liberal use of sanitizers
BYU ScholarsArchive Citation
Birmingham, Wendy C.; Hung, Man; Licari, Frank W.; Hon, Eric S.; Lauren, Evelyn; Su, Sharon; Wadsworth, Lori L.; Lassetter, Jane H.; Graff, Tyler C.; Harman, William; Carroll, William B.; and Lipsky, Martin S., "In an era of uncertainty: Impact of COVID-19on dental education" (2020). Faculty Publications. 6049.
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/6049
Document Type
Peer-Reviewed Article
Publication Date
2020
Permanent URL
http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/8778
Publisher
Wiley Periodicals
Language
English
College
Family, Home, and Social Sciences
Department
Psychology