Assessment of a Nigerian Dental School Implant Training Programme Using Short-and Long-Term Knowledge Acquisition of Students

Abstract

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of a dental implant training programme on dental implant knowledge acquisition and retention among undergraduate dental students

Methods: A cross-sectional study of undergraduate final year students with data collected using a selfadministered questionnaire. The questionnaire elicited information on socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents, knowledge of dental implants, satisfaction and adequacy of implant education as well as interest in practicing implant dentistry. On the first day, the participants were given 20 minutes to complete the questionnaire to assess their baseline knowledge (L0). Then a series of lectures covering various aspects of implant dentistry was delivered to the participants. At the end of the lecture series, the participants were administered the same questionnaire (L1) to assess their knowledge acquisition. Three months later, the participants were administered the same questionnaire (L2), to assess their knowledge retention. The data so obtained was analysed using IBM SPSS version 21.0. Chi square test, ANOVA and Student’s T- test were performed.

Results: There was statistically significant difference in mean between L0 (5.53±2.816) and L1 (9.08±2.614) (3.55; p=0.001). There was increased satisfaction with the level of implant education received, level of interest and preparedness to practice implant dentistry from L0 to L1 with a decrease at L2.

Conclusion: The dental implant programme which consisted of only didactic lectures is an effective method of knowledge acquisition in implant dentistry but does not translate to equal knowledge retention. Therefore, more is needed to improve dental implant training at the undergraduate level.