KNOWLEDGE AND SELF-REPORTED PREPAREDNESS OF FINAL YEAR DENTAL STUDENTS REGARDING MEDICAL EMERGENCIES DURING DENTAL PROCEDURES - A MULTI-CENTER STUDY

• Published in: Pakistan oral & dental journal 2023-09, Vol.43 (3), p.136
• Main Authors: Farid, Huma, Yasir, Ayesha, ALI, SYEDA KHIZRA, HAMAYUN, SHANZA, KHAN, SHANZAY, Zahid, Syeda Nayab
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Asthma; College students; Colleges & universities; Confidence; Curricula; Data collection; Dentists; Emergency preparedness; Fainting; Knowledge; Questionnaires; Self report; Software; Statistical analysis; Students
• ISSN: 1012-8700; 1996-4439

ABSTRACT A dental student competent in recognizing and managing medical emergencies will have a safe practice in the future. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge and self-reported pre-paredness of senior dental students regarding medical emergencies during dental procedures. This cross-sectional study was conducted among final-year dental students in all dental teaching hospitals of Rawalpindi and Islamabad in Pakistan. All final-year students enrolled for the session 2021 in dental colleges of two cities were included in this research study (n=350). A closed-ended questionnaire was used for the data collection procedure consisting of questions related to self-assessed medical emergency preparedness and participants' knowledge/competency regarding specific medical emergencies. A scoring system was used for rating the responses of the participants. Demographic variables were expressed in frequencies and percentages. Comparisons between responses of male and female students regarding self-assessed medical emergency preparedness and knowledge of specific medical emergencies/procedures were made using Pearson's chi-square test of association. Point Bise-rial test was used to determine a correlation between knowledge score and responses to self-assessed medical emergency preparedness (scale variable vs. dichotomous nominal variable). Association/ correlation was considered statistically significant with a P value ≤0.05. Out of 325 students, 204 participated with a response rate of 62.7%. The mean age of the students was 22.89(±1.108) years. Female and male students constituted 76% (n=155) and 24% (n=49) respectively. Half of the respondents (103, 50.5%) scored “good” in self-assessed medical emergency preparedness. The majority of the male students scored “good” as compared to female students (65.3% vs. 45.8%)with a statistically significant association(p=0.20). Most of the students (128, 68.7%) scored “fair” when asked about specific medical emergencies. Respondents with high knowledge scores tend to; inquire about medical history, obtain filled health history forms, had knowledge about emergency drugs/their routes of administration, and administer intramuscular injection with a weak positive statistically significant correlation (p≤0.05). The scores regarding self-reported preparedness and knowledge of undergraduate students towards medical emergencies in our study were mediocre and demanded more emphasis on educating and reinforcing medica