Objectives: To evaluate and assess perceptions of both oral and periodontal health status. The diagnostic proficiency of pre-clinical (year 1 and 2) and clinical (year 3, 4 and 5) undergraduate dental students was determined using the Oral Rating Index (ORI). Methods: The study was conducted over a 12-month period and included all undergraduate dental students attending Cork University Dental School and Hospital during the 2006/2007 academic year. A demonstration to illustrate the “Golden Standard” of the ORI was delivered to the group twice via Microsoft® Office Excel® presentation. Subsequently three tests, each consisting of 24-colour photographs for assessment, were delivered over a two week period. Students were asked to rate the health status of each photograph as follows: excellent, good, fair, poor or very poor.
Results: Seventy-seven pre-clinical (PC) and sixty-four clinical (C) students participated in the study. PC students had the highest “very poor” and “poor” score (p<0.002). C students had the highest “fair”, “good” and “excellent” scores (p<0.002). These results are statistically significant. Overall, diagnostic proficiency was poorest for the first test and greatest for the second test after short instruction in use of the scale. The third test two weeks later was poorer than the second test, but an improvement on the first test. Conclusion: Short instruction in the use of the scale improved diagnostic proficiency suggesting that the ORI may be a useful screening tool for the health care team e.g. doctors, nurses, care workers. It allows rapid assessment of oral hygiene and gingival inflammation levels without aids or instrumentation, prompting where necessary, referral to a dental practitioner for further investigations thus preventing disease progression.