Pre-Dental Students Get Hands-On Experience in Dentistry Simulation Lab

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 23, 2015) - The University of Kentucky College of Dentistry is working to introduce tomorrow’s dentists to the profession now — offering students a glimpse into the world of a practicing dentist. Undergraduate students from Morehead State University, enrolled in a special online pre-dental lecture course, visited UK to take part in several hands-on dental exercises using the latest instruments in dental technology.

UKCD faculty members Dr. Rodrigo Fuentealba and Dr. Gitanjali Pinto-Sinai led the simulation lab, assisted by second-year UKCD student Mackenzie Bentley, a graduate of MSU. The simulation lab portion allows students the opportunity to work with actual dental instruments and realize how precise a dentist must be while working in the confines of a patient’s mouth.

“All the activities were taught at a basic level and demonstrated live in a step-by-step fashion. Being exposed at this early stage to experiences like this one can be eye opening for some of these students,” said Fuentealba.

Students learned how to communicate using proper dentistry terminology before picking up their dental hand pieces — not drills — and practicing how to address different types of caries, or cavities to the layperson.

“No amount of observation can replace the learning that comes from doing, which is facilitated by using state-of-the-art simulators at UKCD,” said Pinto-Sinai. “This hands-on experience is invaluable in helping potential future dentists make more informed career decisions."

The Appalachian Rural Dental Education Partnership (ARDEP) between UKCD and MSU, funded by the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), offers such courses to increase opportunities for Kentuckians from Appalachian counties to pursue dental education and practice as a career choice, as well as improve the numbers and distribution of dentists practicing in Kentucky’s Appalachian counties.

This course, as well as other ARDEP offerings, provides an educational foundation for students interested in pursuing a career in dentistry, or for those who want to enhance their knowledge of oral health prior to entering another health field.

“When we started working with MSU three years ago, we really did not know exactly how the programming would look, but this project has been a wonderfully collaborative way to try new things to expand the pipeline into dental schools among those in the rural Appalachian areas of Kentucky,” said UKCD Dean Sharon Turner, who first conceived of the idea of such a collaboration and has been the principle investigator on the grant funded by the ARC.

“I had heard that UK had begun a relationship with Morehead, and I wanted to be involved. As alumni of Morehead, I feel it's important to support and encourage students who are now where I was two years ago and offer any help or knowledge I could pass along,” said Bentley.

MSU participants have positive things to say about the course as well.

"The opportunity to experiment in the dental simulation lab was nothing less than amazing. To be able to work on a typodont (a plastic model used to practice dental procedures) in undergraduate studies boosts students like myself to the next level, giving them an added experience in the field they want to pursue," said Ryan Steele.

“If anybody were on the fence about dentistry, or were just somewhat attracted to the idea, I would wholeheartedly suggest taking this course,” said Brad Cantrell. 

Media Contact: Ann Blackford at 859-323-6442 or ann.blackford@uky.edu