Opinions of Irish dental practitioners on dental nurse training

The aim of this study was to investigate the opinions of Irish dental practitioners on dental nurse training.

A postal questionnaire was sent to 200 dental practitioners selected at random from the Irish Register of Dentists. Information sought included the importance of a dental nursing qualification when selecting employees, their opinions regarding the ideal qualities a dental nurse should possess, the appropriate duration and content of a training programme, and the willingness of the practitioner to participate in this training.

Replies were received from 106 practitioners (response rate = 53%). Seventy-four respondents (70%) expressed a preference for employing a dental nurse with a recognised qualification. The three most important qualities identified for dental nurses were 'personality/manner' (70% of responses), 'interpersonal skills' (53% of responses) and 'knowledge of dental procedures' (32% of responses). Ninety-one respondents (86%) felt that a one year (or less) programme was a suitable duration for dental nurse training. Eighty-one respondents (76%) were willing to participate in the delivery of clinical training.

From this limited investigation, a majority of dental practitioners felt that suitable dental nurse training programmes should be of up to 1 year's duration (86%), should incorporate an assessment of the trainee's clinical skills (94%), and were willing to participate in the delivery of clinical training (76%). These views should be considered in the design of future dental nurse training programmes.