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Efficacy of a Geriatric Oral Health CD as a Learning Tool
Author(s) -
Teasdale Thomas A.,
Shaikh Mehtab
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
journal of dental education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.53
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1930-7837
pISSN - 0022-0337
DOI - 10.1002/j.0022-0337.2006.70.12.tb04241.x
Subject(s) - test (biology) , intervention (counseling) , medicine , geriatrics , oral health , stratified sampling , health care , family medicine , geriatric dentistry , cluster sampling , psychology , nursing , population , paleontology , environmental health , pathology , psychiatry , economics , biology , economic growth
To better prepare professionals to meet the needs of older patients, a self‐instructional computer module on geriatric oral health was previously developed. A follow‐up study reported here tested the efficacy of this educational tool for improving student knowledge of geriatric oral care. A convenience sampling procedure was used. Sample size calculation revealed that fifty‐six subjects were required to meet clinical and statistical criteria. Paired t‐test addressed our hypothesis that use of the educational tool is associated with improvement in knowledge. Fifty‐eight first‐year dental students and nine third‐year medical students completed the pre‐intervention test and were given the CD‐based educational tool. After seven days, all participants completed the post‐intervention test. Knowledge of geriatric oral health improved among the sixty‐seven students included in this study (p=0.019). When stratified on the basis of viewing the CD‐ROM, the subgroup of thirty‐eight students who reported not actually reviewing the CD‐ROM had no change in their knowledge scores, while the subgroup of twenty‐nine students who reported reviewing the CD had a significant improvement in test scores (p<0.001). Use of a self‐instructional e‐learning tool in geriatric oral health is effective among those students who choose to employ such tools.