RESUMO
INTRODUCTION: Developing professionalism notably involves learning how to make professional judgements in ambiguous situations. The Concordance of Judgement Test (CJT) is a learning tool that was proposed to develop professionalism competencies, but it was never performed in dentistry or used with a synchronous methodology. The present study evaluated the feasibility of the use of CJT in the context of dental education, to foster professionalism and stimulate reflexivity and discussion. MATERIALS AND METHODS: After different steps of optimization, a questionnaire presenting 12 vignettes was submitted to 33 Canadian students. Second, after an additional optimization, a questionnaire of 7 vignettes was submitted to 87 French students. An immediate educational feedback was proposed after each vignette to promote reflexivity and discussions during the experience. RESULTS: The overall experience of the students was reported as good, thanks to the feedback of real-life situations. This promoted reflexivity and stimulated discussion between students and educators regarding professionalism issues. The students considered CJT as a relevant and well-adapted tool, and reported positive feelings regarding the inter-university aspect of the activity. The mean score of the panel members was close to 80/100 and the mean score of the students was 5 to 10 points lower, which is in agreement with docimological performance. CONCLUSION: The results suggested that the use of CJT in a synchronous way was a feasible and relevant tool to motivate the students to improve their professionalism, and to stimulate their reflexivity and discussion. The students reported positive experience with CJT, and we believe that this tool can be integrated in the dental curriculum.
RESUMO
The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) is a practical examination that provides a standardized assessment of clinical competence. The aim of this study is to evaluate the objectivity and the reliability of an OSCE in dentistry. To this end, a retrospective monocentric observational study was conducted at the Faculty of Dentistry of Nancy by analyzing the exam results of 81 students. The study population consisted of the fifth-year students. The examination was broken down into six stations which were doubled, and different juries of examiners were constituted (installed in different rooms) according to the same composition. The p-value was set at 0.05. We found an equivalence of the results between the different rooms on the global mean score obtained at the six stations (p = 0.021). In terms of gender, women have statistically significantly higher overall scores than men (p = 0.001). The evaluation of a difference in the scores between full-time and part-time teachers does not find any statistically significant difference or equivalence in the station where it was possible to realize the comparison. However, the students' waiting time before the exam seems to negatively influence the results. Compared with other international OSCE studies, the results presented seemed sufficiently objective and reliable, although some adjustments are still necessary.
RESUMO
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM: Dental alloy manufacturers advise against the reuse of previously melted alloy. However, for economic reasons, dental laboratories often reuse the casting surplus (sprue and metal remaining in the crucible former). Such reuse remains a controversial topic in dental practice. PURPOSE: The purpose of this systematic review was to assess the effects of remelting dental alloys by evaluating the following parameters: reasons for recasting and associated processes, feasible number of recastings, treatment of alloys before recasting and its effects on cytotoxicity, color of opaque porcelain, castability of alloys, marginal accuracy, mechanical properties, porcelain-metal interfaces, and corrosion. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The systematic review included all studies on dental alloy recasting. MEDLINE, Dentistry and Oral Science Source, Science Direct, and ISI Web of Science were searched (up to July 2014). Data were extracted and the quality of studies was assessed. RESULTS: Thirty-four studies published between 1983 and 2014 were included. The number of recastings ranged from 1 to 10. The percentage of new alloy ranged from 0 to 100 wt%, although the mean value was 50 wt%. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence for the feasibility of adding 50% new metal at each recasting is limited. The number of recastings should be limited to a maximum of 4. No general test protocol can be deduced from these studies, which limits the comparison and exploitation of data. Furthermore, no consensus protocol exists for the evaluation of recasting. Future studies should work toward establishing a standard protocol.