title: The impact of integrated team care taught using a live NHS contract on the educational experience of final year dental students.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the responses of the dental student body in the first three years of outreach education (2010-13) at the University of Portsmouth Dental Academy in the areas of integrated team work and use of a current NHS contact.
  
  
  METHODS
  Use of a questionnaire to allow both quantitative and qualitative data to be obtained, administered to the three cohorts of students at the end of their longitudinal attendance at the Academy in their final year of education at King's College London Dental Institute.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Data were obtained from 227 students which represented a 95% return rate. Sixty-four percent of students strongly agreed with both statements: 'I am confident with working with a dental nurse' and 'I now understand properly the scope of practice of dental hygiene-therapists'. Sixty-seven percent strongly agreed with the statement 'I have had useful experience of working in NHS primary care during the final year'. Eighty percent either strongly agreed or agreed with the statement 'My experience of real Units of Dental Activity and Key Performance Indicators has encouraged me to positively consider NHS high street dentistry as a career option'.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Within the limitations of this study the dental students reported having gained useful experience of working in integrated team care dentistry. They expressed strong support for the education that is being delivered in an outreach environment and, most importantly, the student body was looking forward to entering general dental practice in the UK.
authors.affiliation: Integrated Dental Education and Multi-Professional Care, King's College London Dental Institute and University of Portsmouth Dental Academy.
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Radford
authors.affiliation: Director of the University of Portsmouth Dental Academy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Holmes
authors.affiliation: King's College London Dental Institute.
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Woolford
authors.affiliation: King's College London Dental Institute.
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Dunne
mesh_terms: D003729:Dental Care / Q000379:methods; D004497:Education, Dental / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D010348:Patient Care Team; D013222:State Medicine; D013335:Students, Dental; D006113:United Kingdom