TY - JOUR
T1 - How Well Prepared Are Dental Students and New Graduates in Pakistan—A Cross-Sectional National Study
AU - Javed, Muhammad Qasim
AU - Nawabi, Shazia
AU - Bhatti, Usman Anwer
AU - Atique, Sundus
AU - AlAttas, Mustafa Hussein
AU - Abulhamael, Ayman M.
AU - Zahra, Daniel
AU - Ali, Kamran
PY - 2023/1/13
Y1 - 2023/1/13
N2 - The transition of an undergraduate dental student to an actual practicing dentist is a crucial phase and ensuring the preparedness of graduates for the complexity and demands of contemporary dental practice is a challenging task. This study aimed to evaluate the self-perceived preparedness of undergraduate dental students and house officers in the dental colleges of Pakistan. A cross-sectional national study was planned to collect information from dental students and new graduates in Pakistan. The pre-validated Dental Undergraduates Preparedness Assessment Scale (DU-PAS) was used. A purposive sampling technique was utilized to recruit house officers and undergraduate dental students from 27 dental schools in Pakistan. The data analysis was carried out using the R statistical environment for Windows (R Core Team, 2015). A total of 862 responses with 642 females and 219 males were analyzed in the study. Overall, the clinical skills score was 30.56 ± 9.08 and the score for soft skills was 30.54 ± 10.6. The mean age of the participants was 23.42 ± 1.28. Deficiencies were reported in various soft skills and clinical skills attributes. The results highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of dental students and new graduates in Pakistani dental institutions. The findings may be used to further develop and strengthen the teaching and training of dental students in Pakistan.
AB - The transition of an undergraduate dental student to an actual practicing dentist is a crucial phase and ensuring the preparedness of graduates for the complexity and demands of contemporary dental practice is a challenging task. This study aimed to evaluate the self-perceived preparedness of undergraduate dental students and house officers in the dental colleges of Pakistan. A cross-sectional national study was planned to collect information from dental students and new graduates in Pakistan. The pre-validated Dental Undergraduates Preparedness Assessment Scale (DU-PAS) was used. A purposive sampling technique was utilized to recruit house officers and undergraduate dental students from 27 dental schools in Pakistan. The data analysis was carried out using the R statistical environment for Windows (R Core Team, 2015). A total of 862 responses with 642 females and 219 males were analyzed in the study. Overall, the clinical skills score was 30.56 ± 9.08 and the score for soft skills was 30.54 ± 10.6. The mean age of the participants was 23.42 ± 1.28. Deficiencies were reported in various soft skills and clinical skills attributes. The results highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of dental students and new graduates in Pakistani dental institutions. The findings may be used to further develop and strengthen the teaching and training of dental students in Pakistan.
U2 - 10.3390/ijerph20021506
DO - 10.3390/ijerph20021506
M3 - Article
SN - 1661-7827
VL - 20
SP - 1506
EP - 1506
JO - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
JF - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
IS - 2
ER -
