Western Dentistry Clinical Aspects

[knrosh93]

I've heard so many great things about Western dentistry clinical practice. If I do end up pursuing dentistry, I really want to get as much experience as possible in the clinics while I'm a student. I always have this fear of being unskilled when I actually become a dentist.

Can a current Western student share some experience? Do you like the clinics at western etc etc?

[Zaandrei.]

Well we just started shadowing upper years in the clinics... and we're barely halfway through our first year. Uppers years appear to be quite confident while they work; more so than I expected...

During 4th year you spend 100% of your time in the clinic; while you start seeing your own comprehensive-care patients in 3rd year. First and 2nd year you observe/assist uppers years and practice in the sim-clinic.... and on each other.

[knrosh93]

Well we just started shadowing upper years in the clinics... and we're barely halfway through our first year. Uppers years appear to be quite confident while they work; more so than I expected...

During 4th year you spend 100% of your time in the clinic; while you start seeing your own comprehensive-care patients in 3rd year. First and 2nd year you observe/assist uppers years and practice in the sim-clinic.... and on each other.

That sounds so cool! Are upper years constantly monitored by a professor or are they mostly on their own?

[Zaandrei.]

There are instructors assigned to a specific clinical area of about 6 cubicles each or so; they are required to sign-off on certain things. I think by that time you should feel pretty independent though... in under a year they're out on their own

[cookiemonster99]

care to elaborate on what type of procedure you have assisted?

 

One of my classmates 2 weeks into clinic did a perio splint

[Zaandrei.]

We're only supposed to observe in our first year, but most of us have found that we're basically taking the role of the dental assistant, just to get accustomed to the clinic environment. Yesterday. we were up in the clinic placing topical and rubber dams on each other.

[cleanup]

To be fair, a first or second year can't give you much input on what the clinical experience is like, and beyond that, it's extremely difficult to compare clinical experiences between and even within schools/classes since it's a little different for everyone.

 

At least here at U of T clinic is really what you make of it, and a big part of it sometimes is luck. Some people get really lucky with patients and get complex cases, pleasant patients with deep pockets, etc., and end up doing a whole lot of stuff. Others get stuck with simple cases, or unreliable patients who can't afford, decide upon, or be relied upon for treatment, and they struggle to get their clinical requirements done.

 

I was in this second boat, but was lucky to be able to do some rotations that not everyone gets to do, and got a lot more clinical experience that way.

 

You can also do externships during your summers if you want to see/do more. 

 

I believe one thing that could be an advantage (though this is debatable, depending on who you ask) of going to Western vs. Toronto is that Schulich doesn't have nearly as many grad departments as Toronto. In Toronto with so many grad departments a lot of things are referred away to residents, particularly endo & perio. Without the same resources at Western, undergraduate students are relied upon more and so the threshold of "Welp, better not let some pimply 3rd year DDS student do this" is lowered so you MIGHT be able to do more complex endo, crown lengthenings, like that. You can argue that this is not in the best interest of the patient, but it is, after all, a school.

 

It really is what you make of it. You won't know what it's like until you actually go through it, take a step back, and ponder to yourself if you feel like you wanted more. It's part of why a lot of people end of doing GPRs/AEGDs; they may not feel like they got the clinical experience they wanted out of school, yet. I will tell you this though: in general, if you want to have an extremely varied, busy, and full-fledged clinical experience and feel as confident as possible coming out of school, go to the States. The clinical experience in Canada pales in comparison.

[ottawaliquid]

Cleanup summed it up pretty nicely

 

I would say that regardless of where you go to school.. you'll be pretty green on graduating.  Hopefully you'll have a little bit of experience with just about everything though and a good mentor to approach after graduating.

 

A lot of what you hear from anyone about the various schools can be conflicting.  When I was weighing those decisions I heard that Schulich students received very little experience and then from other people that they received the most.  I guess it likely comes down to personal experience.  

 

Even when we will be seeing 1 or 2 patients a day in 4th year, it doesn't come close to amount of patients that a dentist will see in a "regular' practice in the real world.  I'd imagine thats when the real experience will set in

[thewintersoldier]

I think that all schools in Ontario (and likely Canada.. just haven't spoke to many students outside of ON) are comparable in clinical experience!

 

Just speaking out as a second year students in UWO... as we shadow in second year, we are allowed to do procedures if the clinical instructor is comfortable with us doing so. Local injections, impressions and sometimes even fillings (if the row instructor has given us permission to do so). 

 

Clinical experience and learning I feel is most prominent when you actually start practicing outside of the dental school. I've heard there is a learning curve for the first couple of years out of dental school b/c dentistry is just so broad of a profession. However comfort wise, I can say that the students I've shadowed in 3rd and 4th year seem very confident in what they are doing (not that they know everything), but I can see their confidence translate into their treatment.  In fact you'll never stop learning for that matter.