Undergraduate orthodontic teaching in UK dental schools

This paper assesses the current teaching of undergraduate orthodontics in UK dental schools and the changes these courses have undergone in the last three years.

Questionnaires were e-mailed to the undergraduate orthodontic course leaders in each of the UK dental schools. Twelve dental schools agreed to participate in the survey. Responses were checked for completeness, summarised and sent back to individual course leaders to verify. These verified responses were then analysed.

There was a wide variation in the orthodontic course form and content in the 12 UK dental schools. The greatest variation occurred in the clinical teaching hours (50 to 126), the types of patient treatment undertaken (removable only to full fixed), the laboratory teaching hours (0 to 60), the content of the laboratory course (removable appliances to fixed appliance typodonts), the in-course assessment (minimal to extensive, and 0% to 40% of BDS), and the format of the BDS examination. A number of dental schools reported reductions in their orthodontic courses in academic, clinical and laboratory hours and content, and in the number of undergraduate orthodontic teaching staff in the last three years.

Comparison of undergraduate orthodontic courses revealed a wide variation in course hours and content, and in student assessment and examination. Considerable changes have occurred to the courses in the last three years. Half of the UK courses have been affected by The First Five Years General Dental Council document(1) and university pressures, with reductions in both course content and staffing in the last three years. For standards to be maintained, guidelines are needed to safeguard clinical content and student assessment in undergraduate orthodontic courses in UK dental schools.