A cross-sectional study of dentists about the need for a practice management course in undergraduate dental program

ABSTRACT

Objective: To evaluate dentists' opinions about the need for a practice management course in the undergraduate dental program. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2017 on practicing dentists in Lahore, Pakistan. A self-administered pilot-tested questionnaire was distributed among 588 dentists using a convenience sampling method to obtain their responses about the need for a practice management course. Descriptive statistics and bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed. Results: About 83.8% of 588 dentists completed the questionnaires. There were 36.7% of males and 63.3% of females (mean age 26.22 ± 4.8 years). The principles of patient management (94.1%), time management skills (90.3%), and teamwork (89.2%) were the most commonly agreed topics of the practice management course. The least agreed topics included office design (59.2%), health-care systems (60.9%), and inventory systems (69%). Most participants (74.4%) thought that a practice management course is required to successfully manage a dental practice, and 63% recommended to include the course in the dental curriculum. Multivariate logistic regression showed that dentists working in private clinic (odds ratio (OR): 3.35, P = 0.001), dentists with graduation within ≤ past 5 years (OR: 3.64, P = 0.001), and dentists who attended a practice management course (OR: 3.12, P = 0.001) were more likely to agree to the need of a practice management course to successfully run a dental office. Conclusion: Most dentists believed that a practice management course is required for a successful dental practice. The development and implementation of such a course should be based on the feedback from dentists to ensure evidence-based approaches.

Key words:

Dental practice - dentists - practice management

• REFERENCES

• 1 Taichman RS, Parkinson JW, Nelson BA, Nordquist B, Ferguson-Young DC, Thompson Jr. JF. et al. Leadership training for oral health professionals: A call to action. J Dent Educ 2012; 76: 185-91
• 2 American Dental Association. Commission on Dental Accreditation. Accreditation Standards for Dental Education Programs. http://www.ada.org/~/media/CODA/Files/predoc.ashx . [Last accessed on 2017 Jun 07]
• 3 Kalenderian E, Skoulas A, Timothé P, Friedland B. Integrating leadership into a practice management curriculum for dental students. J Dent Educ 2010; 74: 464-71
• 4 Weaver RG, Chmar JE, Haden NK, Valachovic RW. Annual ADEA survey of dental school seniors: 2004 graduating class. J Dent Educ 2005; 69: 595-619
• 5 Gerbert B, Badner V, Maguire B, Martinoff J, Wycoff S, Crawford W. et al. Recent graduates' evaluation of their dental school education. J Dent Educ 1987; 51: 697-700
• 6 Houlberg BJ. Dental residents' perceptions of practice and patient management training during postgraduate education. J Dent Educ 2008; 72: 643-52
• 7 Ralph WJ, Stewart BL, Macmillan CH. Survey of dental practice/dental education in victoria Part II. Recent graduates/graduating students. Aust Dent J 1990; 35: 69-75
• 8 Pousson RG, McDonald GT. A model for increasing senior dental student production using private practice principles. J Dent Educ 2004; 68: 1272-7
• 9 Barber M, Wiesen R, Arnold S, Taichman RS, Taichman LS. Perceptions of business skill development by graduates of the university of Michigan dental school. J Dent Educ 2011; 75: 505-17
• 10 Benbelaïd R, Dot D, Levy G, Eid N. Difficulties encountered at the beginning of professional life: Results of a 2003 pilot survey among undergraduate students in Paris Rene Descartes University (France). Eur J Dent Educ 2006; 10: 204-9
• 11 Gorter RC, Storm MK, te Brake JH, Kersten HW, Eijkman MA. Outcome of career expectancies and early professional burnout among newly qualified dentists. Int Dent J 2007; 57: 279-85
• 12 Maupomé G, Borges-Yáñez SA, Dáez-de-Bonilla FJ, Pineda-Cruz A. Perceptions of the importance and control of professional problems in the clinical setting. Int J Occup Saf Ergon 2001; 7: 247-62
• 13 Oliver GR, Lynch CD, Chadwick BL, Santini A, Wilson NH. What I wish I'd learned at dental school. Br Dent J 2016; 221: 187-94
• 14 Razak IA, Latifah RR, Jaafar N, Abu Hassan MI, Ab Murat N. Assessing the competency of university of Malaya dental graduates: Employers' and graduates' perceptions. J Dent Educ 2008; 72: 364-9
• 15 Safi Y, Khami MR, Razeghi S, Shamloo N, Soroush M, Akhgari E. et al. Designing and implementation of a course on successful dental practice for dentists. J Dent (Tehran) 2015; 12: 447-55
• 16 Pakistan Medical and Dental Council. Statistics. http://www.pmdc.org.pk/Statistics/tabid/103/Default.aspx . [Last accessed on 2018 Mar 07]
• 17 Sullivan KM, Soe MM. Documentation for Sample Size for a Cross-Sectional, Cohort, or Clinical Trial Studies. 2007 http://www.openepi.com/PDFDocs/SSCohortDoc.pdf . [Last accessed on 2017 Jul 23]
• 18 Schonwetter DJ, Schwartz B. Comparing practice management courses in Canadian dental schools. J Dent Educ 2018; 82: 501-9
• 19 DeVon HA, Block ME, Moyle-Wright P, Ernst DM, Hayden SJ, Lazzara DJ. et al. A psychometric toolbox for testing validity and reliability. J Nurs Scholarsh 2007; 39: 155-64
• 20 Rattray J, Jones MC. Essential elements of questionnaire design and development. J Clin Nurs 2007; 16: 234-43
• 21 Khami MR, Akhgari E, Moscowchi A, Yazdani R, Mohebbi SZ, Pakdaman A. et al. Knowledge and attitude of a group of dentists towards the topics of a course on principles of successful dental practice management. J Dent Med 2012; 25: 41-7
• 22 Ali DA. Patient satisfaction in dental healthcare centers. Eur J Dent 2016; 10: 309-14
• 23 Finkbeiner BL. Four-handed dentistry: Instrument transfer. J Contemp Dent Pract 2001; 2: 57-76
• 24 Singh N, Jain A, Sinha N, Chauhan A, Rehman R. Application of four-handed dentistry in clinical practice: A review. Int J Dent Med Res 2014; 1: 8-13
• 25 Vandamme K, Opdebeeck H, Naert I. Pathways in multidisciplinary oral health care as a tool to improve clinical performance. Int J Prosthodont 2006; 19: 227-35
• 26 Levin RP. Seven secrets of scheduling. Compend Contin Educ Dent 2004; 25: 936-7
• 27 Levin R. Productive use of office time. J Am Dent Assoc 2005; 136: 787-8
• 28 Al-Shamiri HM, Al-Maweri SA, Shugaa-Addin B, Alaizari NA, Hunaish A. Awareness of basic life support among Saudi dental students and interns. Eur J Dent 2017; 11: 521-5
• 29 Finkbeiner BL, Finkbeiner CA. Practice Management for the Dental Team-E-Boo. Missouri, United States: Elsevier Health Sciences; 2015
• 30 Pakistan Medical and Dental Council. Recognized Dental Colleges in Pakistan. http://www.pmdc.org.pk/RECOGNIZEDDENTALCOLLEGESINPAKISTAN/tabid/167/Default.aspx . [Last accessed on 2017 Dec 14]
• 31 Nadershahi NA, Nielsen DB. Educating the practice-ready dentist. J Calif Dent Assoc 2005; 33: 801-4