Learning objectives
At the end of the course, students will show increased knowledge and skills in the psychological field to understand health behaviors and contribute to the development of interventions to improve oral health through behavior change.
Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:
• Define fear, anxiety, phobia, and pain. Describe how they are related.
• List some of the methods of assessment of dental fear or phobia.
• Describe the physiological reactions to fear stimuli.
• List common reasons for patient's fear of dentistry.
• List some current methods used by dentists to reduce the anxiety of their patients.
• Describe the role of the dental staff in reducing patient anxiety.
• List actions that experts recommend avoiding in order to reduce patient anxiety.
• Describe ways of teaching the patient to relax during dental treatment.
• List the conditions when is it appropriate to refer the patient to a mental health professional or a dental fears treatment.
Students will be able to know a number of non-pharmacological (behavioural and cognitive) techniques that can be used in the dental clinic or surgery in order to assist anxious individuals and their evidence base.
They also will be able to identifying dental fear and understanding its aetiology, nature and associated components.
Prerequisites
None
Course unit content
Training will be provided to identify, assess and treat psychological difficulties that impact on dental care, treatment and outcomes. We will explore the role that psychological theory can play in understanding health behaviors and developing interventions to improve oral health through behavior change. The role that behavioral sciences play in the daily practice of dentistry is an essential part of dental education, but it can often seem distant from the reality of everyday clinical practice.
What do I need to know and do to successfully accomplish the human side of my job? Effective interpersonal communication skills are essential
to profession functioning. An highly interactive face-to-face course that provides opportunities for students to develop the necessary skills to effectively function as a member of a dental team.
Dental phobia is the world’s most common simple phobia, affecting approximately 10% of adults and 10% of children worldwide. Definitions of fear, anxiety, phobia and pain and the relationships between them.
Methods of assessment of dental fear or phobia. The physiological reactions to fear stimuli. Methods used by dentists to reduce the anxiety of their patients. The role of the dental staff in reducing patient anxiety.
The conditions when is it appropriate to refer the patient to a mental health professional or a dental fears treatment clinic associated with a dental school.
Non-pharmacological (behavioural and cognitive) techniques that can be used in the dental clinic or surgery in order to assist anxious individuals and their evidence base.
Full programme
Definition of fear, anxiety, phobia, and pain and their relationships. In all, the links between psychology and daily practice are emphasized and explained and the theoretical concepts are placed in the context of daily clinical work.
Methods of assessment of dental fear or phobia. Psychological assessment for issues related to oral and dental care,
cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for dental/medical fears, particularly for patients who cannot accept dental treatment due to anxiety or need to be treated in a hospital environment owing to complex medical or dental conditions.
Gag-reflex management. Psychological interventions for individuals with chronic orofacial pain) and other oral medicine conditions.
The physiological reactions to fear stimuli. Methods used by dentists to reduce the anxiety of their patients. The role of the dental staff in reducing patient anxiety.
The conditions when is it appropriate to refer the patient to a mental health professional or a dental fears treatment clinic associated with a dental school.
Bibliography
The following scientific paper will be discussed during the course lessons:
1) Hofer et al. BMC Oral Health (2016). Pre-treatment anxiety in a dental hygiene recall population: a cross-sectional pilot study. 16, 43. doi:10.1186/s12903-016-0198-8.
2) Sharma, S., et al. (2015). Assessment of relationship between pain and anxiety following dental extraction—A prospective study. Pain Studies and Treatment, 3, 23-30. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/pst.2015.33003.
3) Harmfield, J.M & Heaton, L.J. (2013). Management of fear and anxiety in the dental clinic: a review. Australian Dental Journal 2013; 58: 390–407. doi: 10.1111/adj.12118.
4) Dudley, J., Richards, L. & Mahmud, M. (2020). The use of a psychological testing instrument as an indicator of dissatisfaction with aesthetic dental treatment – a preliminary study. BMC Psychol 8, 24. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-020-0391-z
5) Appukuttan D. P. (2016). Strategies to manage patients with dental anxiety and dental phobia: literature review. Clinical, cosmetic and investigational dentistry, 8, 35–50. https://doi.org/10.2147/CCIDE.S63626
6) Kassem El Hajj, H., Fares, Y. & Abou-Abbas, L. Assessment of dental anxiety and dental phobia among adults in Lebanon. BMC Oral Health 21, 48 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12903-021-01409-2
7) Rao, D. G., Havale, R., Nagaraj, M., Karobari, N. M., Latha, A. M., Tharay, N., & Shrutha, S. P. (2019). Assessment of efficacy of virtual reality distraction in reducing pain perception and anxiety in children aged 6-10 Years: A behavioral interventional study. International journal of clinical pediatric dentistry, 12(6), 510–513. https://doi.org/10.5005/jp-journals-10005-1694
8) Dou, L., Vanschaayk, M.M., Zhang, Y. et al. (2018). The prevalence of dental anxiety and its association with pain and other variables among adult patients with irreversible pulpitis. BMC Oral Health 18, 101. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12903-018-0563-x
The slides are considered as integral part of the teaching material. To download them, you need to register for the online course.
Non-attending students are reminded to check the teaching material available and the information provided through the Elly platform.
Teaching methods
Lectures will be held on-site in compliance with safety standards, provided that further instructions on the ongoing health emergency are not implemented. Material will be available on the specific, student-reserved platform (Elly) and will include slide presentations, audio-video aids or video-recording of the lectures. highly interactive course emphasizes learning through doing.
Through practice sessions, case studies and problem-centred learning, participants will develop their skills in assessing anxious patients and developing therapy plans, including graded exposure and cognitive interventions. individually or in small groups, students will be involved in focused practice, analysis and interpretation of techniques, methods and data from scientific papers. A discussion-based teaching model will be implemented with the expectation that students actively participate in and extract meaning from papers, case studies, with simulations and role playing.
Assessment methods and criteria
A single or group oral assessment. To verify the student’s knowledge, topics’ comprehension and her/his skills to apply them on the occupational contexts will be evaluated by questions on the topics related to the course content. Failed answer to one or more questions or proved insufficiency of the basic knowledge on the subject will preclude the successful completion of the evaluation. The completion of the evaluation will be indicated on Esse 3 platform within a week.
Other information
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