Clinical Senior Lecturer and Director of Undergraduate Dental Education
At Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, students are introduced to the importance of community involvement from the moment they start their course. Social responsibility is ingrained in the Dentistry programme through the module ‘Professionalism, Teamwork and Social Responsibility’ (PTSR), on which students are enrolled for all five years of their programme.
Queen Mary students are the workforce of tomorrow, and many of our dental students will be working in and for the local community once they graduate. As such, they need to develop the necessary skills to behave ethically in a professional environment, and understand their place within society and the local community. With this in mind, the Institute of Dentistry designed the PTSR module to develop professionalism within each cohort of students.
In their first year, students undertake an observational session at a community outreach dental clinic. In years two, three and four, they are required to complete at least 10 hours of voluntary work at a community project of their choice. Recent projects selected by students have included the Whitechapel Mission and the Teddy Bear Hospital. In their final year of study, students must undertake a two-day dental placement, where they reflect and report back on their observations of the social responsibility of their practice.
By giving back to communities, the students also gain something in return: important skills to assist them in their careers. Not only does this opportunity give them a perspective on their social responsibility as dentists, but it enables them to develop key transferable skills and attributes such as communication, leadership, and professionalism.
Most importantly, feedback from students has indicated that they believe the module to be valuable in their development. Encouragingly, 68% of respondents agreed that their professionalism improved after undertaking this module.
While the programme is a chance to improve personal skills, the essence of volunteering is never lost, as one student reflection encapsulates:
I don't visit Sam for several hours every week whilst thinking about the skills I am using. I do this because Sam needs someone, and I am privileged to be able to help such a wonderful gentleman get by and enjoy life that little bit more.