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Exploring Fifty Years of Scholarship Across the Curriculum (SAC) and Table Clinics at the Dalhousie Faculty of Dentistry

Date

2022-04-04

Authors

Robison, Warren
McNally, Mary

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Dalhousie University. Faculty of Dentistry

Abstract

For some, doing research can be ominous and uncertain. From time to time, one may hear in the halls of the dental building, in tones of frustration, “Why do we need to do research to become a good clinician!?” I had the opportunity to attend the “Table Clinics” (TC) event on the day I interviewed for dental school at Dalhousie. At that time, I began to wonder if research in one area or another influenced the direction, or at least confidence level, of clinicians towards the specific area of research that they studied for their TC project. For example, if someone did research on implants, did they have more confidence regarding the use of implants in their practice further down the road? The intent of this research was to find out whether the “learning about how to do re- search” through TC projects and learning about Evidence-Based Dentistry (EBD) has influenced the practice of future clinicians. This was done by sending a focused survey to all Dalhousie Faculty of Dentistry (FOD) Alumni, both Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) and Dental Hygiene (DH), to explore their experiences relating their understanding of EBD and their TC topic to later practice. The results of the survey indicated that for both DDS and DH the learning and/or skills they gained by doing a TC project was beneficial. The in-depth knowledge gained about their TC topic benefited them both as a student and as a clinician. Learning about the research process specifically did not provide as much benefit to them as a clinician, though still providing benefit. Participants overwhelmingly responded that understanding the principles of EBD has provided a benefit in responding to clinical questions (90%), and agreed that the learning of scholarship skills, such as searching and analyzing papers, should be included as part of a dental education.

Description

This student (Robison) led project was conducted as part of the Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS), Research in Oral Health (RIOH) program and overseen by faculty (McNally). Each student in the DDS program is required to complete a multi-phase independent project as part of their RIOH course requirements. Projects are based on developing areas of dentistry (eg., clinical practice, dental education, population health, biomaterials science, quality assurance, knowledge exchange) applying research and systematic evidence-based principles. Faculty members work one-on-one with a student through each stage of the project over the course of the DDS program. This project, undertaken on the Fifty-year Anniversary of student independent projects (formerly known as Table Clinics), marks a critical juncture in the DDS program whereby the Table Clinics program was undergoing curriculum development to better align its aims with elevating standards for research and evidence-based science review. Findings from this study provide a window through which to consider review and input from former students in the development of future curriculum and expectations for RIOH. It is strengthened by being a student-led project, particularly regarding the insights brought to light through the qualitative analysis of open-ended questions. This report provides a comprehensive description of the survey findings that will inform and enhance RIOH program development.

Keywords

Citation

Robison W, McNally M. Exploring fifty years of Scholarship Across the Curriculum (SAC) and Table Clinics at the Dalhousie Faculty of Dentistry. Submitted to the Faculty of Dentistry in partial fulfillment of Dent4010-Research In Oral Health, Dalhousie University, Halifax Canada. April 14, 2022

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