Students’ perspectives on undergraduate oral surgery education

PURPOSE: This study evaluated students’ perceptions of their self-confidence regarding aspects of their undergraduate oral and maxillofacial surgical training. It further aimed to develop a reliable Turkish version of the questionnaire originally developed by the Association of British Academic Oral Maxillofacial Surgeons (ABAOMS) Education Committee. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of 40 fourth-year and 47 fifth-year dentistry students of Yeditepe University Faculty of Dentistry in Turkey with a mean age of 23.30 ± 1.50 was conducted in January and February 2018. The ABAOMS questionnaire was adapted to the Turkish language and culture. The items were organized in five domains (general information, self-confidence in oral surgery, role of outreach, anatomy knowledge in relation to oral surgery, and career aspirations) with most response options on a five-point Likert-type scale. Reliability was assessed through an internal consistency analysis and a test-retest approach. Descriptive statistics, independent samples t-tests, and Chi-squared for contingency tests were used to examine the data. RESULTS: Cronbach’s alpha coefficient on the questionnaire was 0.89. The responses reflected general agreement among the respondents. Females were significantly more self-confident than males. Although the fifth-year respondents were more self-confident than the fourth-year respondents on items regarding anatomy knowledge, fourth-year respondents were more self confident in forceps extractions. Other than that no major differences in self-confidence were found between the two groups. CONCLUSION: Though self-confidence was high regarding extraction of teeth and retained roots, the participants of this study lacked self-confidence in performing surgical extractions and its related procedures, recognition of malignancies, and ability to differentiate between pain of odontogenic or non-odontogenic origin. Female students were relatively more self-confident. Teaching should focus on practical applications that support students’ sense of self-confidence in their abilities. The Turkish version of the questionnaire was a reliable instrument.