Community Based Dental Education (CBDE) for Dental Students in Cambodia

Introduction: CBDE is becoming popular around the world to expose dental students to experiences outside the dental school setting. Only recently has this been offered to dental students in Cambodia. Objective: to investigate the perceptions of students who have participated in CBDE in Cambodian prisons. Methods: 63 senior dental students from two universities in Cambodia who had participated in mobile outreach programs to provincial prisons over a 6 month period were selected for this study. On their return, a self-administered survey form concerning their experiences and perceptions was provided to each student. Results: students said they became more competent in local anesthesia (96.6%), extractions (96.6%), surgery (44.6%), suturing (85.2%), restorative dentistry (81.4%) and cross infection control (84.5%). Most students said they achieved some (47.6%) or a lot (41.7%) of additional learning from the experience. 88.9% of students said they enjoyed the program. Benefits included: learning from working alongside overseas dentists (92.6%); enjoyment from working alongside overseas dental students (96.7%); learning about the social situation and needs of prisoners in Cambodia (93.7%); enjoying social aspects of the trips (78.7%). Students agreed that CBDE was rewarding personally (96.8%), and 96.7% said they would recommend it to other students. Conclusion: CBDE involving the provision of dental services in rural prisons is a valuable program for Cambodian dental students, and similar programs should be made available to all students.