The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #65480

Susan L. Dietrich, DMD and Neal A. Demby, DMD, MPH. Department of Dental Medicine, Lutheran Medical Center, PO Box 770514, Ocala, FL 34477, 352-854-4794, sdfl@att.net

Distance education is education delivered to students at an alternative site from the presenting institution. Telemedicine uses electronic information and communication technologies to provide and support health care when distance separates the participants. Few studies in dental education have assessed the satisfaction of end users such as postdoctoral dental residents with this mode of education. Lutheran Medical Center, over the past decade has sponsored an innovative national residency training program that places residents in extramural sites (Community Health Centers) as a means of assuring access to oral health services for underserved communities. The CHCs provide excellent and diverse clinical experiences for resident training; however lack the resources required to mount a didactic curriculum that will meet accreditation standards. All sites are linked via a complex video teleconferencing and distance learning network. Residents are exposed to an interactive shared curriculum of over 200 contact hours annually. This study is the first to assess the satisfaction (comparison at baseline and follow up one year later) of a large cohort of postdoctoral residents with the use of distance learning applications throughout their residency. The questionnaire developed and gathered data on a number of technical and faculty attributes associated with parameters of quality needed for successful distance learning programs. Preliminary data suggest that between baseline and follow up postdoctoral residents had become more comfortable with the technology and its applications. When asked about their overall assessment and experience with distance learning and video teleconferencing during their program, they consistently rated it above average.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to:
• discuss distance learning as an application of telemedicine in a postdoctoral dental residency training program
• describe the Lutheran Medical Center model that works to increase access to oral health care to underserved communities through affiliations with Community Health Centers
• analyse the assessment tool used in this study
• identify the attitudes and impressions of postdoctoral dental residents exposed to distance learning applications via video teleconferencing

Keywords: Access to Care, Distance Learning

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.