Abstract
Background: Dentists are always preoccupied with the fate of teeth affected by traumatic injuries. The present study aimed to evaluate the opinions of dental students in Kerman Faculty of Dentistry about the mechanisms involved in teaching dental trauma courses and their self-assessment of the treatments they provide for traumatized teeth.
Methods: The present qualitative study was conducted using face-to-face interviews with senior (last-year) dental students in Kerman Faculty of Dentistry. The interviews continued until adequate data were collected. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, coded, and categorized. The content analysis method was used for data analysis.
Results: Based on the results, the dental trauma credits provided in the faculty were adequate, but the students preferred
collaborative teaching and suggested that a single department should manage the credits that professors from different departments teach to avoid overlap. The majority of the interviewees believed that theoretical lessons alone were not adequate, and practical encounters with trauma patients required practical courses in the phantom clinic, and clinical management of trauma patientswas necessary.
Conclusion: Considering the students’ pinions concerning the inadequacy of theoretical presentation of dental trauma courses, to practically encounter and deal with trauma patients, it is necessary to incorporate practical training in the phantom clinic and clinical treatment of such patients into the educational curriculum so that such patients would best benefit from the treatment services.