Conceptualizing patient interactions eliciting empathy, compassion, reflection, and social projection: A model with...

Area of Science:

• Dental Education
• Clinical Prosthodontics
• Medical Simulation

Background:

• Conceptualizing patient interactions is crucial but often intuitive.
• Limited literature exists on eliciting student thought processes in clinical settings.
• Developing critical thinking in dental students is essential for patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To elicit student thought experiences through four targeted questions.
• To classify student responses and assess faculty evaluations.
• To analyze the impact of a structured questioning format on critical thinking.

Main Methods:

• Forty-two students participated in their first clinical prosthodontics experience.
• Students responded to four open-ended questions about patient interactions.
• Nine faculty members assessed student responses for conceptual understanding.

Main Results:

• 100% of students responded to all questions; 83% demonstrated conceptual grasp.
• Faculty agreement on response categorization was 90%.
• The question sequence fostered empathy, compassion, self-reflection, and social projection.

Conclusions:

• The exercise successfully engaged students in critical thinking relevant to patient encounters.
• The structured questioning format elicited diverse thought experiences.
• The project, progressing from concept to implementation, serves as an emulation model for critical thinking in dental education.