Abstract
Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the current status of dental hygiene curricula related to clinical practice in Korea. Methods: Clinical work included the categories ‘history taking, infection control, oral prophylaxis, preventive treatment, education/counseling, radiography/reading, assisting/cooperation, impression/bite registration, anesthesia, etc.’, and 66 works were finally selected based on the frequent tasks of dental hygienists. The subjects were made to answer nine questionnaires. Results: It was found that the theory and practice of the main works operated quite differently in lectures and practice in each school. All types of practice were applied to all schools in the case of ‘scaling’. The evaluation of clinical practice was also found to be very different from school to school. Conclusions: For dental hygienists to establish expertise in clinical practice and promote quality improvement, it is necessary to develop a core curriculum focusing on clinical practice. The standardized curriculum should be improved to an efficient and competency-centered one defining clearly the role of dental hygienists considering the needs and importance of clinical practice.
Figures & Tables
Table 1. General characteristics of study subjects
