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Case Experiences, Attitudes, and Educational Environment of Dental Public Health Students in Thailand |
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| รหัสดีโอไอ | |
| Creator | Nilubol Panbuth |
| Title | Case Experiences, Attitudes, and Educational Environment of Dental Public Health Students in Thailand |
| Contributor | Warunyoo On – See, Panumat Sasen, Sirada Jantes |
| Publisher | คณะสาธารณสุขศาสตร์ มหาวิทยาลัยมหิดล |
| Publication Year | 2569 |
| Journal Title | Thai Journal of Public Health |
| Journal Vol. | 56 |
| Journal No. | 1 |
| Page no. | 1675 - 1696 |
| Keyword | Dental public health officer, Clinical experience, Educational environment, Attitude, Curriculum evaluation, Thailand |
| URL Website | https://he02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/jph |
| Website title | Thai Journal of Public Health |
| ISSN | 2697 - 5866 |
| Abstract | Dental public health officers in Thailand lack standardized training requirements across institutions. This study aimed to assess case experiences, attitudes toward dental practice, and educational environmental factors among final-year dental public health students from multiple colleges to inform curriculum standardization. A cross-sectional study was conducted in October – November 2024 among 200 final-year dental public health students from five colleges representing all regions of Thailand with 167 respondents. Data were collected using a validated 4-part questionnaire covering demographics, case experiences, attitudes (5-point scale), and educational environment (modified DREEM). Descriptive statistics, Kruskal-Wallis and Post-hoc tests were used for analysis. The results indicated that students performed a median of 7.00 oral treatment records, 12.00 tooth sealants, and 7.00 Class I resin composite fillings. Most students had moderate-level attitudes toward dental practice (mean score: 2.79±0.41 out of 5). Overall educational environment was rated as 'more positive than negative' (69.7%). Significant variations between colleges were found in all nearly dental procedure experiences (p <0.05), overall attitudes (H=15.377, p=0.004), and teacher perception (H=19.342, p=0.001).Thai dental public health students demonstrate competency in most dental procedures but show significant inter-college variations in clinical experiences, attitudes, and teacher perception, indicating need for curriculum standardization. Colleges should establish minimum case requirements for graduation and standardize teaching methods through inter-institutional collaboration. The Ministry of Public Health should clarify the scope of dental practice for dental public health officers. |
