Effectiveness of an infant oral health care educational intervention on knowledge of dental students

Abstract

Nouf S AlHammad1, Fouad S Salama21Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics Department, King Saud University College of Dentistry, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 2Growth and Development Department, College of Dentistry, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NEBackground: This study evaluated the effectiveness of an infant oral health care educational intervention on the knowledge of female dental students at King Saud University in Riyadh city.Methods: One hundred and twenty-eight students participated in the study. The participants were from different levels in the dental college, ie, second year (D2), third year (D3), fourth year (D4), and fifth year (D5). Assessment by questionnaire was completed immediately before and after a 14-minute educational intervention, in the form of a PowerPoint presentation and video on oral health of infants for dental students. The 18-item multiple-choice questionnaire was based on information presented in the presentation.Results: A significant difference (P < 0.001) was found between average pretest scores (9.30 ± 2.24), and average post-test scores (12.56 ± 2.05). The highest percentage of improvement in the post-test as compared with the pretest was recorded for group D2 (50.6%) followed by D3 (40%), D4 (35%), and D5 (23%). One hundred and twenty-six (98.4%) study participants found the presentation helpful in improving their understanding of infant oral health, and 77 (60.2%) were very satisfied with the presentation. Sixty-six participants (51.6%) reported that the presentation was very effective in teaching them about infant oral health, and 83 (65%) were very likely to incorporate this information into their daily practice.Conclusion: A 14-minute PowerPoint and video educational intervention was effective in teaching basic information about infant oral health to dental students.Keywords: dental care for children, education, dental, infant, health knowledge