Incorporate clinical training in long-term care facilities, home visits, and interprofessional education into geriatric dental curricula¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 2 studies (2 review), q2 · 0 of 2 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description¶

Based on the reviewed evidence, the review highlights concrete instructional strategies for geriatric dental education. It reports that "five studies underscored the importance of incorporating clinical training program, particularly in long-term care facilities setting, into undergraduate curricula." Related strategies include aging simulation, role-play, interactive online activities, home visits, and interprofessional education workshops, which studies reported improving empathy, attitudes, and collaborative-care understanding.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Clinical placements, simulation resources, trained supervisors, and interprofessional partners

Constraints¶

• Experiential approaches are resource-intensive and logistically challenging to implement, per the review

Target Learners¶

• Undergraduate dental students
• Postgraduate dental trainees

Target Learning Goals¶

• Empathy toward older adults, attitudes toward dementia and disability, and interprofessional collaborative care competencies

Claims¶

• Experiential learning in authentic clinical environments (community engagement, home visits, outreach rotations) was reported to produce the greatest positive impact on student attitudes, confidence, and perceived competence, but is the most resource-intensive [+W]
• Dental hygiene programs lack adequate preparation of students for care of older adults in alternative practice settings [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Integrate experiential learning activities — community outreach projects, collaborative policy simulations, and applied research opportunities — into dental hygiene curricula
• Integrate structured, evidence-based wound care education—including hands-on and interprofessional components—into undergraduate medical curricula

Examples¶

-

Key Sources¶

• Kim Junhewk, Kim So Yeon, Jung Hoi-In, Kang Jeong-Hyun. (2026). A competency-based curriculum for geriatric dentistry in undergraduate and postgraduate education : a scoping review. BMC Medical Education. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-026-09625-6