Simulation and assessment of dental extraction proficiency Type of project : Self Administered Postal Questionnaire

This study aimed to determine the confidence of recently qualified Foundation Dentists (FDs) in elements of the dental extraction process and to compare this with the assessment of their Foundation Trainers. Also the study aimed to investigate the foundation dentists’ views of their undergraduate training relating to exodontia and any aspects of which they found lacking or alternatively any experiences which they found particularly useful. The dental extraction needs of the UK population are changing with the development of an elderly dentate generation (McHarg and Kay 2009). The 2009 Adult Dental Health Survey observed that a very significant proportion of older adults will have very complex oral health needs with multiple management issues, due to the effects of high decay rates in the past. (White et. al. 2012). This will lead to an inevitable increase in demand for exodontia for this generation although there is frequently less exposure to exodontia in the undergraduate curriculum today (Macluskey and Durham, 2009). Consequently, an investigation into the suitability of simulated extraction procedures within the curriculum to compensate for the reduced clinical exodontia case-load of today’s dental student is particularly pertinent.