Performance of primary healthcare dentists in a distance learning course in pediatric dentistry.

OBJECTIVE: Children are an important portion of the population of the territories covered by Primary Health Care (PHC), with needs and characteristics that can be managed at this level of care. Therefore, it is essential that professionals working in PHC be capable of providing child care. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of dentists working in primary healthcare (PHC) in a pediatric dentistry distance learning (DL) course, and to investigate the relationship between the grades earned on questionnaires applied after each course module and features of their personal and professional profile. METHOD: The study used a convenience sample of 201 dentists working in PHC, who enrolled in a DL course offered by a telehealth center in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The course consisted of video classes on restorative dentistry, endodontics, dental trauma, and clinical management in pediatric dentistry. After completing each module, each participant was asked to answer a questionnaire to assess their acquisition of immediate knowledge. Student's t-test and the ANOVA test were used to assess the relationship between the mean grade earned and the variables of sex, age, type of training institution, time since graduation, and years working in PHC. RESULTS: A significant relationship was observed between type of training institution (public) and the grade earned on the restorative dentistry questionnaire, and also between time since graduation and the grade earned on the dental trauma questionnaire (p < 0.05). No relationship was observed between the personal/professional variables and the grades earned on the endodontics and clinical management questionnaires. Grades were significantly lower on the endodontics questionnaire (p < 0.05). DISCUSSION: The large number of dentists enrolled in this DL course is a demonstration that there is great interest in pediatric dentistry contents. Improvement of DL courses may lead to the enhancement of professionals and their skills, and to a significant improvement in the quality of care provided to children in public health networks. CONCLUSION: It was concluded that training in a public institution and a longer time since graduation positively influenced the grades earned on the restorative dentistry and dental trauma questionnaires, respectively.

Satisfaction of Primary Healthcare Dentists after the Completion of a Distance Learning Course in Pediatric Dentistry.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to assess the level of satisfaction of dentists working in primary healthcare (PHC) with a Distance learning (DL) course in pediatric dentistry offered by the TeleHealthRS center, and to the investigate possible associations between the variables indicative of their satisfaction and their performance on the questionnaires applied before and after the course. METHODS: The course was offered in 2015 by the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) together with the TeleHealthRS center in Brazil. Data were collected on the participants' personal and professional profile, their pre- and post-course knowledge about pediatric dentistry, and their satisfaction with the course. Student's t-test and the ANOVA test were used to assess the possible associations between the variables indicative of their satisfaction and their performance on the questionnaires applied before and after the course. RESULTS: Overall, the participants were satisfied with the course, however, no statistically significant association was found between the variables indicative of their satisfaction and the grades they earned on the pre- and post-course questionnaires. CONCLUSION: The available pediatric dentistry course received positive evaluations from the participants, constituting a possible strategy for the qualification of primary care dentists. Future studies are warranted to further investigate the expectations of DL course participants, aiming to enhance the quality of future editions of this learning modality for pediatric dentistry contents.

Pediatric Dentistry in Primary Healthcare: Creation, Development, and Evaluation of a Distance Education Course.

BACKGROUND: Oral health in childhood is a major problem for global public health. In Brazil, the prevalence of childhood tooth decay varies from 12% to 46%. Dental care treatment in Brazil is almost the exclusive responsibility of primary healthcare (PHC). Therefore, it is essential these professionals are prepared to conduct restorative, endodontic, and exodontic treatments and preventive care in children. INTRODUCTION: Children make up a large proportion of the population in territories requiring advanced dental care provided by PHC in Brazil. To care for these patients, it is necessary to have both manual dexterity and technical knowledge of pediatric dentistry. Accordingly, this study aimed to develop a distance course on pediatric dentistry. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A pretest questionnaire consisting of 15 questions was used to assess initial dental knowledge of participants. After completion of a five-module course, participants retook the same initial dental knowledge questionnaire (post-test). Descriptive statistic and paired t test, one-way analysis of variance, and Pearson and Spearman correlation were used, and a significance level of 5% was set. RESULTS: The majority of participants completing the five-module course were women who earned specialty degrees beyond undergraduate studies and currently worked in PHC (>5 years). Participant performance on the dental knowledge questionnaire after completion of the five-module course improved pre- to post-test. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that completion of a distance course on pediatric dentistry can be an effective tool for improving knowledge of pediatric dentistry in PHC professionals.