The Challenge of Dental Education After COVID-19 Pandemic – Present and Future Innovation Study Design

Abstract

The present work suggests research and innovation on the topic of dental education after the COVID-19 pandemic, is highly justified and could lead to a step change in dental practice. The challenge for the future in dentistry education should be revised with the COVID-19 and the possibility for future pandemics, since in most countries dental students stopped attending the dental faculties as there was a general lockdown of the population. The dental teaching has an important curriculum in the clinic where patients attend general dentistry practice. However, with SARS-CoV-2 virus, people may be reluctant having a dental treatment were airborne transmission can occur in some dental procedures. In preclinical dental education, the acquisition of clinical, technical skills, and the transfer of these skills to the clinic are extremely important. Therefore, dental education has to adapt the curriculum to embrace new technology devices, instrumentations systems, haptic systems, simulation based training, 3D printer machines, to permit validation and calibration of the technical skills of dental students.

Effect of an endodontic e-learning application on students’ performance during their first root canal treatment on real patients: a pilot study

“…Given the persistence of the pandemic, it is necessary to implement a long-term strategy to sustain dental education, including endodontic education [ 32 ], while improving education for the post-pandemic world [ 33 ].…”

Perception of Remote Learning by Fixed Prosthodontic Students at a Romanian Faculty of Dentistry

“…Given the pluses and minuses of the online/remote didactic activities, the majority (75%) of the participants in this study expressed their belief that the future of dental education will be impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. This is a general belief that has been revealed by many studies [ 9 , 10 , 12 , 23 , 29 , 36 , 42 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 48 , 50 , 53 , 54 , 56 ].…”

“…Even if these days, the pandemic seems to be fading, we must recognize that the gains in the usage of new digital technologies and new teaching methods are expected to continue even after the pandemic is over [ 41 , 43 , 44 ]. Most of the dental schools have already made the transition back to face-to-face teaching, but the new methods used during the pandemic can and should complete and enhance the classical approach [ 45 , 46 ].…”

“…These have the potential to deliver relevant, flexible, and immersive learning experiences if they are further enhanced according to the needs of dentistry. At the same time, they should be portable and affordable for large-scale usage by students [ 10 , 24 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 54 ]. Meanwhile, for medicine, some applications and software that are focused on complex, clinically based scenarios are available for use in virtual group discussions to improve students’ decision-making and diagnostic skills [ 26 , 63 ].…”

The impact of coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on dental school assessments – Current status and future perspectives

“…The COVID‐19 pandemic drastically changed how face‐to‐face classroom and clinical educational activities were delivered at dental schools in North America and worldwide 17–22 . The biggest hurdle was to ensure the continuity and quality of education that conforms to local or national policies while safeguarding the health of students, faculty, staff, and patients.…”