Oral and Maxillofacial Surgical simulation: efficacy for medical students

Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) is underrepresented in the medical curriculum with 90% of medical students reporting no exposure to the specialty in medical school. This can result in clinicians having problems recognising emergency presentations, and referrals being made inappropriately. OMFS trainees delivered an educational simulation course on common OMFS pathologies to medical students, with theory and hands-on, high-fidelity simulations that covered anatomy, emergency presentations, and the training pathway. Delegates were assessed immediately before, immediately after, and six-weeks after the course. There were significant improvements in knowledge six weeks after the course, with mean scores improving by 23% for knowledge of anatomy (p<0.01), 21% for emergency management of patients (p<0.01), and 22% for knowledge of the training pathway (p=0.04). There was a 58% increase in interest in OMFS and improved confidence for an oral examination. This study found that improvements in knowledge about concepts in OMFS were sustained and significant. Given the lack of representation of the specialty in medical school, high-fidelity simulation should be more widely adopted as an educational adjunct to help bridge the gap between taught theory and applied practice.