Family violence content in dental hygiene curricula: a national survey.

Full Abstract

Dental personnel are in an excellent position to recognize suspected abuse of dental patients because 65-75 percent of abuse occurs in the head and neck area. While most dental and dental hygiene curricula include the topic of child abuse, it has previously been unknown if other types of abuse, such as intimate partner abuse, elder abuse, and abuse of disabled persons, are addressed. This study was conducted to determine the extent to which dental hygiene programs have incorporated these family violence topics into the curriculum. Specific data on content, teaching methods, faculty, and resources were collected. Reasons for not including family violence in the curricula, attitudes on mandatory continuing education, and support services available for abuse victims were also examined. A fifteen-item survey was sent to all 229 U.S. accredited dental hygiene programs. Surveys were returned from 173 programs for a response rate of 77.5 percent. Child abuse was taught in most programs (N=122, 70.5 percent), while elder abuse (N=95, 54.9 percent), intimate partner abuse (N=81, 46.8 percent), and abuse of individuals with disabilities (N=80, 46.2 percent) were taught in fewer programs. Reasons for not including family violence in the curricula (N=31, 18 percent) varied. The need is critical for increased curriculum attention in U.S. dental hygiene programs to help stem the epidemic of family violence. Raising dental hygienists' awareness of the problem and potentially increasing the number of reports of and referrals for suspected violence may help more victims.

Learn Faster Today Improve your study skills

Author information

Author/s: Gutmann, Marylou E (ME); Solomon, Eric S (ES);

Affiliation: Department of Dental Hygiene, Baylor College of Dentistry, Texas A&M University System Health Science Center, Dallas 75266-0677, USA. mgutmann(-atsign-)tambcd.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: Journal of dental education (J Dent Educ), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2002-Sep; vol 66 (issue 9) : pp 999-1005

Dates: Created 2002/10/10; Completed 2002/10/22; Revised 2004/11/17;

PMID: 12374275, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article (including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.

MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

This article has not been indexed for related articles as yet, however you can still use the live related article search links below.

See 100+ related articles.