The Prevalence of Patient Aggression Toward Dental Students at a Canadian University Teaching Clinic

Studies show concerning rates of occupational violence against oral health care workers, but few studies of this nature have been conducted on dental students in university clinics.

We surveyed 3rd-, 4th- and 5th-year dental students in the 2020-2021 academic year at the dental teaching clinic of the University of Montreal, using a 17-item self-report questionnaire exploring 4 types of aggression: physical, verbal, reputational and sexual.

Of 239 students, 45 (19%) responded to the online questionnaire, and 28 (62% of respondents) reported some form of aggression in the previous year. Verbal aggression and sexual aggression were each reported by 21 (47%) students. No differences were found between rates of aggression based on ethnicity. Women (74%) reported higher rates of aggression than men (47%), although this difference did not reach statistical significance. Of the 6 students who said they speak a language other than French (the workplace language) at home, 5 (83%) reported experiencing sexual aggression.

Most students surveyed reported experiencing some form of patient aggression in the past year. The most common forms of aggression were verbal and sexual. Women and students who speak a language other than French at home may be particularly vulnerable to patient aggression in the clinical setting. This study has implications for dental education and points to the need for training and new solutions to prevent and respond to patient aggression at university dental clinics.