A global probe into dental student perceptions about philanthropy, global dentistry and international student exchanges

Chris S Ivanoff; Krassimira Yaneva; Diana Luan; Bogomil Andonov; Reena R Kumar; Anirudha Agnihotry; Athena E Ivanoff; Dimitrios Emmanouil; Luiz Evaristo Ricci Volpato; Filip Koneski; Ilijana Muratovska; Huda A Al-Shehri; Sara M Al-Taweel; Michele Daly

doi:10.1111/idj.12260

A global probe into dental student perceptions about philanthropy, global dentistry and international student exchanges

Int Dent J. 2017 Apr;67(2):107-116. doi: 10.1111/idj.12260. Epub 2016 Oct 18.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ College of Dentistry, The University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA.
² Faculty of Dental Medicine, Sofia Medical University, Sofia, Bulgaria.
³ Center for Technology and National Security Policy, National Defense University, Washington, DC, USA.
⁴ Faculty of Dental Medicine, Medical University of Plovdiv, Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
⁵ Divya Jyoti College of Dental Sciences and Research, Modinagar, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, India.
⁶ Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH, USA.
⁷ School of Dentistry, National and Kappodistrian University of Athens, Goudi, Athens, Greece.
⁸ Faculty of Dentistry, University of Cuiabá, Cuiabá, MT, Brazil.
⁹ Faculty of Dentistry, Saints Cyril and Methodius University, Skopje, Macedonia (FYROM).
¹⁰ College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
¹¹ Broken Hill University Department of Rural Health, University of Sydney, Broken Hill, NSW, Australia.

Abstract

Background: Training culturally competent graduates who can practice effectively in a multicultural environment is a goal of contemporary dental education. The Global Oral Health Initiative is a network of dental schools seeking to promote global dentistry as a component of cultural competency training.

Objective: Before initiating international student exchanges, a survey was conducted to assess students' awareness of global dentistry and interest in cross-national clerkships.

Methods: A 22-question, YES/NO survey was distributed to 3,487 dental students at eight schools in seven countries. The questions probed students about their school's commitment to enhance their education by promoting global dentistry, volunteerism and philanthropy. The data were analysed using Vassarstats statistical software.

Results: In total, 2,371 students (67.9%) completed the survey. Cultural diversity was seen as an important component of dental education by 72.8% of the students, with two-thirds (66.9%) acknowledging that their training provided preparation for understanding the oral health care needs of disparate peoples. A high proportion (87.9%) agreed that volunteerism and philanthropy are important qualities of a well-rounded dentist, but only about one-third felt that their school supported these behaviours (36.2%) or demonstrated a commitment to promote global dentistry (35.5%). In addition, 87.4% felt that dental schools are morally bound to improve oral health care in marginalised global communities and should provide students with international exchange missions (91%), which would enhance their cultural competency (88.9%) and encourage their participation in charitable missions after graduation (67.6%).

Conclusion: The study suggests that dental students would value international exchanges, which may enhance students' knowledge and self-awareness related to cultural competence.

Keywords: Cultural competency training; global dentistry; global survey; international student exchanges; student perceptions.

MeSH terms

Attitude of Health Personnel*
Fund Raising*
Global Health*
Humans
International Educational Exchange*
Students, Dental / psychology*
Students, Dental / statistics & numerical data
Surveys and Questionnaires
Voluntary Health Agencies