Unit Code: DNT735

Unit Name: Community Dentistry V

Description: This course aims to prepare the student to enter the dental profession with appropriate knowledge and skills in dental public health developed over the 5 year programmeme. The new practitioner will serve the community in both public and privtae practice settings. Public health is concerned with promoting health and preventing disease through organised community efforts, as well as education of individuals and family groups. These are important components of any interdisciplinary approach; whether acting as coommunity advocates or serving as a resource or change agent, the dental professional should be competent to interact with others to promote activities that protect, restore and improve oral health and the quality of life. The new practitioner provides competent care and is capable of discerning and responding ethically to challenges and problems in public and private practice. The competent dental professional holds the benefit of the patient, communities and society as its primary goal. The practice of dentistry occurs in a rapidly changing environment impacting patient care, communities and society and is influenced by ethical issues, regulatory and legal actions, professional issues, economics, social policy, legislative action, cultural diveristy and gender, and health care reform. This course introduces emerging issues in dental public health and risk factors while empowering students in self-directed learning to locate current evidence to support community strategies in disease prevention, managemnt and programmeme evaluation The course is also designed to provide essential and practical knowledge and skills in health services management. In real life situation health professionals spend some 40 to 50 percent of their time in managing resources such as people, finance, medical supplies, assets, planning and supervision. The course intends to address these issues and draws experience from all levels of care, i.e. primary, secondary and tertiary and focuses on the development of a multi skilled health management workforce.

Learning Target Outcomes:

Prerequisite: N/A

Prerequisite Sentence: N/A

Credit Point: 15

Offered In: Semester 1,2