Improvement in the Interpersonal communication Skills of Dental Students

This study compared the interpersonal communication skills of seventy-eight third-year dental students when interacting with their patients before and after they participated in a thirty-five-hour course that addressed recognition of anxiety, interviewing techniques, patient records, behavior management, and patient relations. Students were evaluated before and after attending the course by psychology graduate students who used a behavioral observation form that measured expressive and receptive communication skills, nonverbal communication skills, professional presentation, and sensitivity to cultural, ethnic, and gender diversity. At the conclusion of this course, students\u27 interpersonal skills were rated significantly higher than prior to the course at the p\u3c.0001 level. The outcomes of this study indicate that effective communication between dental students and their patients may be acquired and refined through a course that addresses basic interviewing skills

An analysis of response rate and economic costs between mail and web-based surveys among practicing dentists: A randomized trial

This study explored the economic costs and response rate of mail and web-based surveys with practicing dentists. A random sample of 6,000 practicing dentists was randomly assigned into three groups of 2,000: choice (mail or web-based), postal mail, or web-based. The Florida Tobacco Control Survey 2009, which is composed of 28 questions (including subject demographic questions), served as the survey instrument. A total of 1,232 surveys were returned by the three different groups (21% overall response rate). Response rates were best for the mail (26%) with the worst response rate coming from the Web group (11%). However, a cost-effectiveness analysis revealed that web surveys were 2.68 times more cost effective

Survey of tobacco control among Florida dentists

Cigarette smoking contributes to the largest number of preventable deaths with a recent report estimating that nearly 5 million annual deaths worldwide and 400,000 in the United States were attributed to cigarette smoking. Dentists, in particular, are in a unique position to educate their patients about the health effects of tobacco. Tobacco cessation knowledge, behaviors, and compliance of Florida dentists were assessed using survey methodology. The survey was administered to a random sample of 6,000 dentists, which was provided by the Florida Department of Health. The survey inquired about (1) general demographic information, (2) Ask, Advise, Assess, Assist, and Arrange behaviors, (3) barriers to the incorporation of tobacco cessation activities, and (4) willingness to participate in further training. A large majority of dentists (88%) are not familiar with the concept of the Ask, Advise, Assess, Assist, and Arrange behaviors when asked directly. When asked about each individual component of this approach, however, dentists had much higher response rates. Dentists were best at routinely asking (59%), advising (46%), & assessing (32%) their patients about their smoking. However, they were much less helpful when assisting and arranging follow-up (70% stated that they never arrange follow-up). This study discovered that the majority of dentists who counsel patients spend only 1-4 min. Sixty-six percent of the dentists surveyed were willing to receive specific training, with 50% preferring an online course and 42% preferring a continued education course