Oral Public Health, Preventive and Community Dentistry

Code:

MIMD030105

Acronym:

SPOMDPC

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Dental Medicine

Instance: 2024/2025 - 1S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Mestrado Integrado
Course/CS Responsible:	Integrated Master in Dental Medicine

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
MIMD	81	Official Plan from the academic year 2020/2021	3	-	3	45	81
		NÃO INSCREVER - Plano exclusivo para uso administrativo	3	-	3	45	81

Teaching language

Portuguese
Obs.: Os estudantes internacionais terão acesso a bibliografia de acompanhamento em língua inglesa

Objectives

At the end of the semester, students will be able to understand the Oral Health/Disease binomial in the context of Oral Public Health:

a) Know how to define Oral Public Health and discuss its implications for dental practice.
b) Be able to describe Oral Public Health strategies and advocate the active involvement of dentists in public health strategies.
c) Know the organisation of oral health services in Portugal and Europe.
d)Know how to describe oral public health strategies and advocate the active involvement of dentists in public health strategies.
e)Know how to structure oral health programmes.


In addition, they should have acquired knowledge and developed skills and abilities in the field of Preventive Dentistry and Community Oral Health in order to understand and recognise the risk factors and determinants of oral diseases.

They should also be able to take a critical view of the importance of prevention, health education and oral health promotion in a clinical and community context.

They should be able to discuss prevention strategies for oral diseases, taking into account the common risk factors associated with systemic  pathologies.

Learning outcomes and competences

In the end of the semester, students are expected to have acquired the knowledge and developed the skills and abilities that will enable them to implement preventive measures in a community context.

In addition, students are expected to acquire the skills and competences to plan and develop Oral Health Education and Promotion actions in the community.


Students are expected to acquire the knowledge and skills that will enable them to implement primary prevention measures for oral pathologies in a clinical context.

The student is also expected to acquire skills in Oral Public Health that will enable them to advocate the active commitment of future dentists to public health strategies.

Working method

Presencial

Pre-requirements (prior knowledge) and co-requirements (common knowledge)

Students must have knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of the oral cavity to enable them to understand the binomial health / disease.


Students should have basic knowledge in Public Health and Epidemiology.

Program

Definition Oral Public Health;

Historical perspective of Oral Public Health;

Patterns of oral disease occurrence in a population; Global burden of oral diseases;

Social, cultural, and economic determinants of health in populations;

Inequalities and Inequities in oral health;

Population approach vs. high-risk approach. To identify priorities and define evidence-based strategies in populations’ health;

Oral Public Health surveillance;

Plans (National Oral Health Plan) and Oral Health Plans;

Oral health professionals on the context of public health

Education for oral health.

Prevention and oral health promotion in a community context and clinical setting.

Strategies for prevention and control of oral diseases

• Methods to control dental plaque.
• Fundamentals and current concepts of preventive action and therapeutic use of fluoride.
• Fissure sealants.
• Diet, nutrition and oral health.
• Oral cancer prevention 
• Innovation in Preventive dentistry

Prevention strategies and planning of Oral Health programmes in target populations.

 

Mandatory literature

Splieth, Christian; Innovations in Preventive Dentistry, Quintessence Publishing, 2021. ISBN: 978-1-78698-099-1
Norman O. Harris; Primary Preventive Dentistry. ISBN: 978-1-29204-061-5
Emili Cuenca Sala; Odontología preventiva y comunitaria. ISBN: 978-84-458-2203-6
Blánaid Daly; Essential dental public health. ISBN: 978-0-19-967937-9

Complementary Bibliography

Nutland W, Cragg L; Health Promotion Practice,, 2015

Comments from the literature

As a bibliography, students may be advised to read relevant current scientific papers.

Teaching methods and learning activities

The teaching method will be applied in the context of theoretical and practical classes.

The theoretical-practical classes will take place in a classroom environment, in a pre-clinical environment and in the community.


In the context of the theoretical-practical classes, oral health promotion activities will be carried out in the Paranhos parish school community as part of the Paranhos Smiling Project. In the community, students will be responsible for carrying out and coordinating an Oral Health Promotion activity.

Also in the theoretical-practical context, students will be trained in collecting epidemiological data, training in primary prevention strategies and solving clinical cases.

Theoretical classes with an expository component, using iconographic material such as powerpoint or videos (in those subjects where their use is justified). Despite the lecture component, students will be invited to participate with questions during the class, but also using the Moodlle platform for questions and discussion of the topics taught. These questions are part of a purely formative assessment.

Software

Cariogram® software

keywords

Health sciences

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

Designation	Weight (%)
Teste	70,00
Trabalho de campo	15,00
Trabalho escrito	15,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

Designation	Time (hours)
Elaboração de projeto	30,00
Estudo autónomo	50,00
Frequência das aulas	20,00
Total:	100,00

Eligibility for exams

Students obtain attendance if they are present in 75% of the theoretical-practical classes

Calculation formula of final grade

Distributed assessment without final exam.

Theoretical assessment (70% of the final assessment):

A discontinuous and terminal assessment, involving a written evaluation.
Minimum theoretical assessment grade 10.0 out of 20.

TP assessment (30% of the final assessment):

This assessment, which is continuous and procedural in nature, includes the completion of worksheets and an action to promote Oral Health in the Community.


Components of the theoretical-practical assessment (Minimum grade 10.0 out of 20):

Worksheets and pre-clinical assessment and participation in theoretical-practical classes will be valued - 50% of the theoretical-practical component.
Work on ‘Oral health promotion’ - 50% of the theoretical-practical component.

The pre-clinical assessment of procedures to be carried out later, in a clinical context, in the transversal learning process will be based on the OSCE methodology.
Students will have prior access, published on the Moddle platform, to the criteria that will be used in the assessment processes both in the pre-clinical context and in the community context.



It is mandatory to complete all TP tasks components regardless of student status.

Examinations or Special Assignments

There are no special tests or assignments planned.

Internship work/project

Not required.

Special assessment (TE, DA, ...)

Implementation of the standards set by the FMDUP Pedagogical Board  for the academic year 2024/2025.

Classification improvement

The improvement of the classification can be done through a written test (min. 10.0 out of 20 values) and a practical exam that will cover the subjects taught in the TP classes (10.0 out of 20 values).