Assessing the Oral Health Awareness among the Final Year Undergraduate Nursing Students in Abha, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background and aim: Nurses have first level of contact with patients and their attendants. The services of nurses are also required in promoting the oral health knowledge among the general public. Thus, the aim of this study is to assess the oral health awareness of all the final year undergraduate nursing students in Abha, Saudi Arabia. Materials and methods: A questionnaire based study was con ducted in Abha, in which for a total of 204 final year under graduate nursing students who gathered on the day of survey were given a selfadministered questionnaire which included 26 questions and their knowledge and attitude toward dentistry was evaluated. Statistical analysis: Data analysis was done using statistical package for social science (SPSS 12.0) software and Chi square test was used to find the statis tical significance among the variables. Results:The results of the study indicate that the final year undergraduate nursing students have adequate basic know ledge regarding the oral cavity and the diseases pertaining to it, but they lack knowledge regarding the ideal brushing method, specialties in dentistry and their role. They have shown interest to improve their knowledge in dentistry by attending training programs and camps. Conclusion: Nursing students have showed interest toward camps and clinical postings to improve there knowledge and serve the public. There exists a critical relationship between oral and general health, thus the education of healthcare workers and opportunities for crossfertilization of ideas should be encouraged.

Knowledge and awareness of medical doctors, medical students and nurses about dentistry in Nigeria

“…However, Muttineni et al [ 14 ] in their study of 147 final year nursing students in India concluded that nursing students had adequate basic knowledge of oral health but were still deficient in correct brushing techniques. Similar findings were also reported by Asif et al [ 18 ] amongst nursing students. With the poor awareness of oral health among the medical doctors, nurses and their students in different part of the world, it became necessary to consider this aspect of health care especially in this part of the world where there are limited resources.…”

“…This findings is similar to the reports of Chandra et al [ 22 ] where 100% of participants of high socio economic status group claimed they are awareness of dental diseases. Similarly, Asif et al [ 18 ] also found that 89.9% of their study population knew that there were 32 teeth in the adult cavity. The increased awareness in this study may be due to the fact that the study was done among the educated/professionals.…”

“…Dhanasekaran et al [ 28 ] similarly studied 538 people and noted that only 8.6% of those above the age of 30 years brushed their teeth twice a day while 40% brushed once daily. Some other studies [ 18 , 21 , 29 ] in the scientific literature had shown that most people brush once daily. This may be due to the poor attitude of people to their oral health, busy schedule and poor dental awareness.…”

“…This is largely due to the little or no exposure to dental education during the course of their training. Therefore, inclusion of dental education into the medical curriculum will go a long way in improving dental knowledge and skills among medical practitioners as suggested by many studies [ 18 , 21 , 31 , 33 ]. Oral health is an integral part of systemic health.…”

knowledge and awareness about dentistry among medical students, residents, and medical practitioners in Bhairahawa city, Nepal

“…Oral hygiene practices were satisfactory showing 58.5% was brushing their teeth twice daily, this may be as the study was conducted in educated professionals whereas other studies[ 13 14 15 ] show brushing once daily. Despite that only 33.3% were aware of appropriate time for routine dental consultation thus showing a lack of knowledge.…”