Comparison of Methods of Assessment and Results of Traditional Osce with Electronic-Osce

Introduction: The onset and rise of COVID-19 and its sudden progression to a worldwide pandemic lead medical and dental institutes to change their way of teaching and conducting assessments to distance learning as compared to the previously applied conventional approaches. Teaching and assessment during this era have changed vastly, earlier it was solely traditional/live Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) but due to the current circumstances electronic/online OSCE (E-OSCE) method was introduced. In Pakistan also, Pakistan Medical Council (PMC) and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan (CPSP) conducted online exams so that the scheduled exams do not get delayed. Aim(s): The main objective of this paper is to measure the reliability of an E-OSCE and to compare it with the traditional OSCE. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study which got conducted at the Rawal Institute of Health Sciences, Islamabad. Traditional OSCEs and E-OSCEs were conducted with 71 participants including final year students and house officers. Each OSCEs had 10 stations, including one interactive station in traditional OSCE. Students' scores in both the OSCEs were collected and paired t-test was used to compare the mean scores at p<0.05. Result(s): Total number of house officers were 27 and final year students were 44. The scores of 71 participants were collected. The difference between mean scores of house officers' traditional OSCE and E-OSCE was statistically significant (p=0.000). The difference between final year students traditional OSCE and E-OSCE was also statistically significant (p=0.020). Finally, the overall difference between traditional OSCE and E-OSCE was also statistically significant (p=0.000) Practical implication: The main objective of this study was to assess the reliability of an E-OSCE and to compare whether the electronic method of conducting OSCE is more reliable than the traditional method of conducting OSCE. Conclusion(s): Despite limitations and the biases, the results of E-OSCE proved to be better than traditional OSCE. Further research needs to be conducted on E-OSCE to control the factors causing biases and limitations.Copyright © 2023 Lahore Medical And Dental College. All rights reserved.

Preventive Measures and Spread of COVID-19 Infection among Dental students in Basra in the First Period of the Epidemic in Iraq: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey

This study was undertaken in the college of the Dentistry-University of Basra, Oral and maxillofacial surgery Department. This survey assessed protective measures regarding COVID-19 infection and aimed to evaluation the evidence on the affiliation between use of preventive measures and COVID-19 infection among dental students in Basra. The questionnaires were designed and assembled into two domains as follows: 1-Personal data including age, sex, and academic stage. 2-Analytical data including questions regarding infection rate among dental students and their commitment of COVID-19 preventive measures. An explanation for the aim of this study was coupled to the questionnaire, and the members were asked to sign an online informed permission. The questionnaires were directed toward 1000 dental students and only 875 were responding to the survey and included in the databank. The duration of study approximately takes 10 days, the questionnaire was conducted to students on February, 12th 2020 and the documents collecting were closed at (February, 22nd 2020). On the topic of preventive measures follow in order to avoid the dispersion of COVID-19 infection, an endemic feature of Corona virus disease has led to the deaths of thousands of individuals across several countries. For the prevention of the extent of the disease and its mortality, several preventive measures have been recommended. Conversely, the level of acquaintance and the implementation of such protective measures against COVID-19 among dental students in Basra which constitute vulnerable group are yet to be evaluated. Eight-hundred and seventy-fife questionnaires were analysed. Out of the 875 participants, (250) were males, and (675) were females. Two hundred and sixty-one (29.8%) participants had been infected with covid-19, and six hundred and fourteen (70%) were not being infected. Regarding the correlation between the infection with COVID-19 and the sex and college stage, consequently, no substantial statistical differences were detected between the males and females amongst COVID infected students. This survey demonstrated that the terms of self-protective means in addition to community disaffection will be considerably drops the statistics of dental student's COVID infections.Copyright © RJPT. All right reserved.

Changes in the teaching of prosthodontics adopted in the last academic course of the degree in dentistry in Spain during the first period of the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the teaching of prosthodontics, on the 5th course of the Bachelor's degree in Dentistry in Spain. METHODS: In June 2021, a two-section survey was submitted to the coordinators of prosthodontics of the 23 Spanish faculties of Dentistry. The first section was focused on the theoretical lessons, seminars, and clinical discussion sessions. The second part relied on the clinical teaching and the implemented preventive measures. RESULTS: The response rate was 100%. By the end of the 2020-21 course, both the theoretical and practical teaching were replaced by online activities, returning to face-to face in 2021-22. While most participants preferred in-person seminars and clinical discussion sessions, concerning the theory, comparable percentages of professors chose either face-to-face or blended learning (BL). The students' satisfaction with BL is high, but they seem more attentive in-person. At the beginning of the pandemic, the most common emergency in prosthodontics was debonding. Overall, a low concern about cross-infection was noticed. The barrier measures were the mainly adopted for prevention. CONCLUSIONS: Although the BL is appreciated in prosthodontics for theoretical lessons, face-to-face teaching appears to be the best option for seminars and clinical case discussions. The students are satisfied with BL. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Spanish faculties of Dentistry responded quickly to continuing offering quality education through an accelerated digitization process that has created a new paradigm. Detailed analyses of these changes may help establish plans to respond systematically to unforeseen emergencies.

Real-Time Measurement of Psychological Impact Due to E- Learning, among the Undergraduate Dental Students during Covid-19

Objectives: To assess the psychological factors in undergraduate dental students towards e-learning in clinical skills education compared to traditional teaching methods and their relationship with performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method(s): In this study, survey conductedamong 494undergraduate dentalstudents of all four sessions from different dental universities within the Pakistan. Total 494 undergraduate dental students responded to a 28-question online survey to identify e- learning is more convenient and practicalthan traditional learning and to measure it 5- pointLikertScaleused. To measure level of psychological impact, Hamilton Anxiety Scale used due to e-learning among undergraduate dental students. Result(s): The majority of undergraduate dental student's responded e-learning is not convenient and practical than traditional learning system. The majority of undergraduate dentalstudents reportedveryseverelevelof psychologicalimpactdueto e-learning and closing of institutions during COVID-19 pandemic. Results are statistically significant and analyzed on IBM SPSS version 23. There are 82% students responded having problem with e-learning system and among them 58 % have very severe anxiety and 24% have severe anxiety. So the results shows increased percentage of anxiety due e-learning. Conclusion(s): Dental students expressed a higher level of comfort and effective learning in a recognizable, conventional classroom circumstance. Teaching with traditional system improvesstudent'scriticalthinkingskillsandformulatesopinionsorargumentsbyengaging in live discussions. This study reveals that students face challenges in using the e-learning resources because of incompetency in the IT skills, lack of motivation and access to proper internet. The most important issue identified by this study is maintaining an effective interaction with dental students in e-learning system of teaching to fill the gap between the teacher and students. There should be further flexibility workload and learning time to students to reduce the level of anxiety among the dental students.Copyright © 2020 Ubiquity Press. All rights reserved.

Use of a webinar series to improve exposure to oral & maxillofacial surgery during a global pandemic

Exposure to OMFS at undergraduate level is rare. Students seeking such exposure often struggle to access important information that would help them decide about a future career in OMFS. The COVID-19 pandemic has made access to such information, for example career workshops and specialty conferences, more difficult. This paper discusses our experiences of setting up an online webinar series aimed at providing practical advice for undergraduates and early trainees interested in the field of OMFS. Clinicians were approached via email and/or social media to deliver a structured programme of key advice and guidance about OMFS. Individual undergraduate and surgical societies were emailed in order to advertise the series which included talks such as 'Week in the Life', 'Subspecialties' and 'Portfolio Building'. An interactive poster containing a Quick Response code was circulated to allow a streamlined registration process. The seminars were held via Zoom videoconferencing software and feedback collated via Typeform using a Likert-scale questionnaire. On average, the webinars were 60 minutes long and each attracted 53 attendees. The series attracted 183 unique participants. The majority of attendees were dental students and 85% were based in the UK. Overall, 94% felt their knowledge of the specialty had improved and 86% were more likely to consider pursuing OMFS as a career as result of the series. This paper shows that videoconferencing is a useful modality to engage with junior trainees and has a wide reach. These benefits must be harnessed going forward to improve access and exposure to OMFS in early trainees.Copyright © 2022 The Authors

How has the mental health of junior staff been negatively affected by the current COVID-19 climate?

While pandemics are widely recognised and remembered for their devastating physical effects on human and/or animal life, previously a less talked about but recognised effect is that on mental health. This audit aimed to measure the negative effects COVID-19 has had on the mental wellbeing of junior staff working in hospitals, specifically the Dental Core Trainees (DCT) throughout the Thames Valley and Wessex (TVW) Deanery. 40% of the respondents used the intervention, with meditation and mindfulness found most useful. The overall mental health of the DCT improved with increased scores seen in all areas of personal life. Leisure activity/hobbies increased as well as positive behaviours which resulted in anxiety levels decreasing significantly. There was an overall reduction in all stressors except 'workload/responsibilities', which increased from 40 to 80%. Dissatisfaction with senior support which was not in line with what the DCT wanted or needed. Responses still showed that 'family/friends health' continues to be of higher importance than 'personal health'. The intervention was partly successful, with increased satisfaction levels and improved mental wellbeing. A lack of perceived internal support from Trusts and poor communication from senior colleagues with no specific guidance on how their role was changing despite the second intervention.Copyright © 2021 The Authors

Dental Student's Satisfaction with the Video-assisted Educational Approach in Teaching Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Principles

BACKGROUND: Educating dental students in practical skills are a difficult task that has become increasingly demanding since the outbreak of COVID-19. Today, the use of digital media plays an essential role in teaching practical skills. AIM: This study investigated the effect of educational videos on oral and maxillofacial surgery basics on dental student's satisfaction. METHOD(S): Six subjects were chosen from the principles of oral and maxillofacial surgery, and according to the necessary standards, educational videos were made based on the needs assessment of students. Fellow attending evaluated and approved each video. Students were shown videos in six 2-h sessions. Students were given a researcher-created questionnaire with proven validity and reliability. Students filled out questionnaires to evaluate the impact of educational videos as well as the structure of educational videos. RESULT(S): Two hundred and three students participated in this study in their 4th-6th years. In this study, 203 students in their 4th to the 6th year participated. Most students were satisfied with the structure of educational videos (73.9%);in general, 84.7% of students expressed their satisfaction with this method. Half of the students preferred video training over face-to-face training in oral and maxillofacial surgery (50.4%). Many students suggested that these videos be included in the curriculum (80.7%). CONCLUSION(S): Students' overall satisfaction with the structure and impact of educational videos indicates that educational videos made and evaluated by dental professors can help teach practical topics as a part of the curriculum.Copyright © 2022 Maryam Hosseini, Anita Taheri, Farzad Nouri, Ashkan Badkoobeh, Kamyar Abbasi, Mohsen Golkar, Mostafa Alam.

Effect of Covid-19 Pandemic on Levels of Empathy among Dental Students in Bhubaneswar- a Cross-Sectional Study

Objective: The purpose of this research was to examine how the Coronavirus epidemic has affected the compassion of dentistry students in Bhubaneswar. Materials and Equipment: In this study, undergraduate dental students in Bhubaneswar served as the research subjects for a cross-sectional analysis. Following informed permission, dental school students from two time periods (one before and one after the occurrence of Coronavirus in India) were given the authorized and pretested Toronto Sympathy Poll (TEQ) (Bhubaneswar). A five-point scale was used to indicate members' levels of comprehension. Using a one-way analysis of variance, we compared students' TEQ scores during their four years of dentistry school (investigation of difference). The results of the meetings were analyzed using Tukey's post hoc test. The Chi-square test was used to analyze data collected before and during the recent Coronavirus epidemic (importance level, p 0.05). Only 270 of the 300 dentistry students enrolled in the focus before Coronavirus reached its conclusion;the remaining 260 enrolled thereafter. Comparing results from the same group before and after exposure to the Coronavirus revealed striking discrepancies in the compassion ratings. More than eighty-five percent of individuals answered the survey. As a result of this study's findings, it is concluded that undergraduate dental students' mean empathy ratings increased after COVID-19, indicating a discernibly greater degree of empathy at that time. Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications. All rights reserved.

Psychological Implications of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Dental Students and Dentists

This study assessed the psychological impact of 91 students and 89 dentists during the Covid-19 pandemic through an anonymous online questionnaire. Statistical processing was done in SPSS 26.0. The psychological impact on dental students and dentists due to the Covid-19 pandemic was moderate;negative sensations of insecurity, stress, nervousness and feelings of sadness were moderate (scores≥3). The fear of infection with the SarS-CoV-2 virus from patients was moderate (scores≥3), but the fear of infecting close people was high (scores≥4). Concerns about their families' health problems were also increased (scores≥4). Students and dentists did not regret choosing this profession and did not lose control over their lives (scores≥1). Respondents' answers correlated statistically significantly with some independent socio-demographic variables (p≤0.05). Our study revealed that the Covid-19 pandemic had a negative impact on the psychological health of dental students and dentists, who had moderate symptoms and signs of stress and anxiety than of depression, but they knew how to control their lives despite the dangers of the Covid-19 pandemic. © 2022 IEEE.

Perception and Attitude of Medical and Dental Students Towards Covid-19 and its Vaccination in A Medical and Dental College of India

Background: Medical and dental students are among the frontline workers in the battle against COVID 19. As such their vaccination is mandatory. We conducted this study to assess perception and attitude of medical and dental students towards COVID-19 disease and its vaccination. Method(s): A total of 185 medical and 170 dental students were included in our study. A questionnaire based on previous studies was prepared. The respondents were interviewed telephonically and appropriate responses were recorded. Result(s): Among 355 students enrolled in our study, higher percentage of dental students were infected with COVID-19 (26%) as against only 20% medical students. 60% dental students had been tested for COVID-19 as against 70% medical students. Majority students in both the groups had done rapid antigen test (RAT). Academic loss was the major COVID-19 disease related concern among medical students, while in dental group there were two major concerns i.e academic loss and fear of passing the infection to family. Both the groups feared anaphylaxis the most as a sequel of vaccination. The other vaccination concerns in both the groups were fever, myalgias, infertility, thrombus formation while few female students feared that vaccination may disturb their menstrual cycles. The preferred vaccine in both the groups was Covishield. Conclusion(s): Our study concluded that there are many hurdles in the path of vaccination even among medical and dental students. It is important to address these hesitancies especially among health care workers since their opinion and recommendation is held supreme by common masses. Copyright © RJPT All right reserved.

Awareness About Post Covid Complications In The Oral Cavity Among Dental Students

Introduction: Coronavirus is a large group of RNA viruses that causes chronic respiratory problems in humans. Severe COVID- 19 acute infection, along with associated therapeutic measures, could potentially contribute to various opportunistic fungal infection, xerostomia linked to decreased salivary flow, ulcerations and gingivitis as a result of impared immune system and susceptible oral mucosa. Aim(s): The aim of the study is to create awareness about post COVID complications in the oral cavity among dental students. Material(s) and Method(s): The sample size of the study was about 100 participants of undergraduate dental students. A set of questionnaires was created by the use of google form software, the data collection software score and represent the participants answer in a pie chart. Result(s): It is clear that 59 % of people were aware about the post COVID complications in the oral cavity.Among the males 38% of people were aware that gingivitis is a post COVID complication. Whereas, among females 19% of people were aware that gingivitis is a post COVID complication. Collectively among males and females, males were more aware about the post COVID complication in the oral cavity. Conclusion(s): The study had concluded that students were moderately aware about the post covid complications in the oral cavity. Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications. All rights reserved.

Skill and Simulation Lab in Dentistry - A Futuristic Era

Simulation is a technique where the situation or a process is imitated. This process makes one to pretend the scenario. Aviation industry is one of the oldest industry which uses simulation technique to simulate the aviation technique. The main aim of having simulation lab is to make students acquire psychomotor skills before they actually treat the patients. Presently the National Medical Council of India has made it mandatory to have a skill lab but desirable to have a simulated mannequin for the training of medical students before actually treating the patients. Various advantages and disadvantages are appreciated in simulation technique. It is not very far that Dental council of India may make compulsory training of certain simulated modules in dentistry before treating the patient. Simulation lab in the pandemic like COVID has really helped people to undergo extensive training before treating patients, especially one who were catering the COVID ward or intensive care units. The simulation in dentistry is not a very old technique, certain technique are already in practice, but this article tries to highlight the necessity and gray areas where simulation can be improved for the benefit of students to learn and for the benefit of patients in view of safety. Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications. All rights reserved.

Instrument validation of dental students' mental outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic

Aims: The goal of this project is to validate an instrument for measuring dental students' mental health outcomes due to COVID-19. Method(s): The instrument consists of 13 items measuring various aspects ofmental health issues arising from COVID-19. It was administered to 145 dental students. Summary statistics, item and person reliabilities, dimensionality, item targeting and gender bias were assessed. Result(s): Of the items evaluated, they showed excellent reliability (Item = 0.97;person = 0.86). The instrument targeted the dental students very well, and was fairly unidimensional.All of the items were free of gender bias. Interitem correlations were 0.89 on average (95% CI 0.86-0.91), demonstrating good internal consistency. Conclusion(s): The present study applied rigorous, advanced psychometric analysis to assess and validate a novel mental health instrument that specifically measures COVID-19 mental health outcomes in dental students. The instrument showed excellent measurement properties. It can serve as a valuable tool for evaluating the effectiveness of intervention programs that aim to improve students' mental health outcomes related to COVID-19.

Evaluation of online dental education amid COVID-19 pandemic in undergraduate dental students of Pakistan

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of online dental education amid COVID-19 pandemic in undergraduate dental students of our institutions. Methodology: This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out from November-December 2020, and included 239 undergraduate students at dental institutes of Sindh, Pakistan. An online questionnaire link was sent to dental students through emails and social media platforms. SPSS 25 was used for data analysis. Result(s): Out of total 239 participants, 101 (42.25%) were from private and 138 (57.74%) from public teaching institutes. Fifty-eight (24.3%) students were in first professional, 36 (15.1%) in second, 22(9.2%) in third and 123 (51.5%) in fourth year BDS. Online platforms for teaching used were Zoom by 133 (55.6%), Google classroom by 54 (22.6%) and Microsoft team by 52 (21.8%) students. Majority, 168 (70.3%) participants believed online teaching was inadequate to train and prepare for actual clinical scenarios. There was a significant difference (p < 0.001) amongst students' perception regarding online teaching motivation, methods, impact, assessment, teacher's competency and feedback evaluation. Conclusion(s): Undergraduate students were facing technical difficulties with online teaching in the region. Although they felt motivated with online teaching, but believed that teachers were not trained for online education. Students reported that online teaching was less intimidating than face to face learning but it is difficult to interact in online lectures. Majority of participants felt that lack of training and physical teaching might affect their future growth of training and preparation for actual clinical scenarios. Copyright © 2022, Pakistan Medical Association. All rights reserved.

The Impact of a 1-Year COVID-19 Extension on Undergraduate Dentistry in Dundee: Final Year Students' Perspectives of Their Training in Oral Surgery.

BACKGROUND: The detrimental impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on dental education prompted the Scottish Government to fund an additional year to the dental course to ensure that the students had the necessary clinical experience. The aim of the study was to better understand the final year student perceptions of this extension on their oral surgery experience at the University of Dundee. METHODS: This mixed methods study consisted of an anonymous online questionnaire and a focus group. RESULTS: Forty-one students (69.3%) completed the questionnaire and ten students participated in the focus group. Thirty-six (88.8%) students agreed that the oral surgery teaching provided sufficient knowledge to undertake independent practice. All of the students felt confident to carry out an extraction, and the majority of them (n = 40, 95%) felt confident to remove a retained root, however, their confidence with surgery was lower. CONCLUSION: The extension gave the students sufficient experience in oral surgery to gain confidence in clinical skills and an appropriate level of knowledge in preparation for the next phase of their career. Most of the students agreed that the extension was necessary and beneficial. This cohort graduated with more oral surgery experience than any of the students did in the previous 4 years from Dundee and with experience that was comparable with the students at other schools in the pre-COVID-19 era.

Awareness of Remdesivir Therapy among Dental Students

Introduction: While several authorized medicines and research drugs have displayed antiviral effectiveness against the SARS-CoV-2, there are currently no validated antiviral therapies for treating gravely ill patients with COVID-19. No particular antiviral drug has been shown to be successful in treating patients with extreme coronavirus disease 2019 . Remdesivir (GS-5734), a nuclear analog drug, has inhibitory activity on pathogenic animals and coronaviruses in humans. Aim(s): The survey intented to evaluate the dental students ' awareness of Remdesivir therapy. Materials And Method: This was a cross-sectional type of research based on a questionnaire which included 100 dental college students in Chennai. A self-designed questionnaire with ten questions generating knowledge and awareness amongst dental college students about Remdesivir therapy. Questionnaires were distributed via an online database survey world. Questions discussed understanding of Remdesivir treatment, signs, counter-inications, action mechanism and side effects. Data were collected and analyzed after the answers were obtained from 100 participants. Result(s): 27% were aware about Remdesivir therapy . 15% were aware of the mechanism of action of Remdesivir therapy . 15% were aware of the indications of Remdesivir therapy . 12% were aware of the contraindications of Remdesivir therapy.14%.were aware of the side effects of Remdesivir therapy . Conclusion(s): There was limited awareness among dental students regarding Remdesivir in managing viral infections. Intensified awareness and education programmes must be instituted to disseminate knowledge about Remdesivir therapy. Copyright © 2022 Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications. All rights reserved.

Inventory of Sources of Stress During Medical Education - Further Validation

Introduction: The Inventory of Academic Sources of Stress in Medical Education (IASSME) evaluates the presence and intensity of the main sources of academic stress for Portuguese Medicine students in five dimensions: Course demands/CD, Human demands/HD, Lifestyle/LS, Academic competition/AC, and Academic adjustment/AA. Objective(s): To further validate the ISSME using Confirmatory Factor Analysis and to analyze[ATP1] the psychometric properties of a new version including additional sources of stress. Method(s): Participants were 666 Portuguese medicine (82.6%) and dentistry (17.4%) students (81.8% girls);they answered an online survey including the ISSME and other validated questionnaires: Maslach Burnout Inventory - Students Survey (MBI-SS) and Depression Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS). Result(s): Confirmatory Factor Analysis showed that the second order model composed of five factors (the original structure by Loureiro et al. 2008), but excluding item 11 (loading=.371), presented good fit indexes (chi2 /df=3.274;RMSEA=.0581, p<.001;CFI=.917;TLI=.904, GFI=.919). The Cronbach's alfas were alpha=.897 for the total and from alpha=.669 (F2-HD) to alpha=.859 (F1-CD) for the dimensions. The expanded version, including two additional items related to lack of interest in medicine/dentistry (F6, alpha=.543) and two additional COVID-19 stress-related-items (F7, alpha=.744) also showed acceptable fit indexes (chi2 /df=3.513;RMSEA=.061, p<.001;CFI=.88.;TLI=.866, GFI=.892). This new version's alpha was of .896. Pearson correlations between ISSME and the other measures were significant (p<.01) and high: >.55 with DASS and >.50 with MBI-SS. Girls presented significantly higher ISSME scores. F6 score was significantly higher in dentistry students. Conclusion(s): This further validation study underlines that IASSME presents good validity (construct and convergent) and reliability.

COVID-19 pandemic: Its effects on perception of learning among students of dental schools in Jeddah

Context: The COVID-19 epidemic having produced a sudden and dramatic change in teaching and learning approaches, it is imperative to ascertain the effectiveness of these frequently used methods. Aims: The present study intends to examine the learning experience of dentistry students during the COVID-19 epidemic and to determine the perception of these students regarding learning. Settings and Design: A cross-sectional survey was done among the students (3rd year through internship) from all the four dental schools in Jeddah using a nonprobability convenience sample approach. Subjects and Methods: A Google Form comprising the pilot tested survey questionnaire with open-ended 20 questions in English was distributed to the dental students by personal E-mails or social media/messaging. As per the response, the participants' descriptive statistics were reported in frequencies and percentages. Statistical Analysis Used: The Chi-square test was performed to seek for correlations between variables using the (IBM) SPSS software version 22.0. Results: A total of 415 dental students across four dental colleges of Jeddah participated in the survey. The most opted virtual platform for carrying out teaching was Zoom (64.58%). Nearly 67.71% of them showed good proficiency in using various electronic devices (P = 0.016). They preferred online video demonstrations of dental procedures over live demonstrations (P = 0.004). Students preferred to work in a simulation setting in a laboratory than working on patients with either nonaerosol producing procedures or with limited patient exposures (P = 0.012). They believed that their confidence level acquired in practical/clinical skills was good (P = 0.022), but the pandemic had negatively affected their personal well-being/career growth (P < 0.001). Furthermore, they agreed that the COVID-19 pandemic would change the future of dental education (P = 0.002). Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly changed the way of education and virtual online education has becoming the new norm. The traditional assessment method of focusing solely on examinations needs to be updated.

Stress, anxiety and depression in dental students: Impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 pandemic.

INTRODUCTION: With the emergence of COVID-19, dental medicine students were faced with a new reality, as a modification of the learning methods in Dentistry colleges happened. The aim of this study was to characterise the possible effects of Covid-19 pandemic in terms of anxiety, depression, and stress among students of dentistry. MATHERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted between October 2020 and May 2021. A total of 1115 participants from a total of approximately 3000 students from the seven university institutions that teach the master's degree in dentistry in Portugal, agreed to participate. An online self-reported questionnaire was applied through Google Forms® platform. The questionnaire was divided in three sections: the students' sociodemographic characterisation, pedagogical aspects, and questions about anxiety, depression, and stress using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress-21 Scale. RESULTS: Normal levels of anxiety, depression, and stress, were found in 41%, 36.7%, and 22.7% of the participants, respectively. Being female was the most significant and strong predictor of anxiety and stress, and for depression, not feeling fulfilled in the course they were in was the most significant variable. CONCLUSION: The participants presented high values of anxiety, depression, and stress, during the pandemic state. Gender and not feeling fulfilled in the course were important predictors.

ASSESSMENT of DENTAL STUDENTS' FAMILIARITY with INFECTION PREVENTION during COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Introduction: At the time of the pandemic with the new coronavirus COVID-19, new guidelines for dental practice were published in May 2020. The aim of this research is to examine the familiarity of dental students and their attitudes about current guidelines. Materials and methods: The study involved 76 fourth-year students of School of Dental Medicine University of Zagreb, Faculty of Dental medicine University of Rijeka and Study of Dental medicine at University of Split School of Medicine. A measurement instrument was developed based on in-depth interviews and a pilot survey. An online questionnaire consisting of 37 questions was published on the Google Forms platform. The survey data were analyzed by methods of descriptive statistics using Microsoft Excell. Results: Research results showed there is room for improvement of the dental students' knowledge of the current guidelines for dental practice. Students who have come across the guidelines outside the faculty environment (such as assistantships or growing up close to dental professionals) have demonstrated lesser knowledge of the guidelines. Students also independently assessed their familiarity with the guidelines as moderate, while evaluating the application of current guidelines as very important. Conclusion: Awareness of dental students' should be improved by adapting the curriculum of dental studies and increasing availability of information on current guidelines for dental students. Students of dental medicine need to be motivated to independently inform themselves about the current guidelines for dental practice, and thus improve their clinical work during and after graduation.