口腔医学专业在灾难事故中的工作和目标

口腔医学专业医疗机构和医护人员是我国一支重要的卫生服务力量。本文在灾难事故中口腔医学专业救灾案例和经验的基础上,讨论口腔医学专业在灾难事故中的工作和目标,包括参加初步救护、伤员分类,进行颌面外科手术、牙齿保健和紧急治疗,使用牙齿记录确定尸体身份等。口腔医学专业应在灾难事故中作出更大的贡献。     

口腔医学专业在特大自然灾难中的作用

灾难是由于人为或自然的原因，造成某些系统运行严重故障或瘫痪，使这些系统支持的业务功能停顿或服务水平不可接受，并达到特定时间的突发性事件。中国是一个幅员辽阔、人口众多的国家，如何采取有效措施，确保人民的财产和生命安全，是各级政府必须要注重解决的问题。近年来，造成群死群伤的特大自然灾难时有发生，这对医疗救治工作提出了新的要求。     

口腔医学救护在抗震救灾中的重要作用

本文以口腔专业医护人员参与5·12四川汶川大地震抗震救灾的具体事例，以及在抗震救灾中发挥的重要作用和经验，探讨了口腔医学专业如何参与灾难事故发生时的医疗救护工作，提出加强口腔医务人员灾难医学学习的重要性与必要性。     

口腔颌面部地震伤的诊治特点及其救治——四川汶川抗震救灾经验与感想

以华西口腔医院参与5.12四川汶川大地震抗震救灾的具体实践为依据,分析口腔颌面部地震伤的诊治特点和救治措施,希望为未来国家应对大规模灾难性事件中口腔颌面部伤的救治提供参考.     

Gene discovery for dental anomalies: a primer for the dental professional

BackgroundThousands of inherited human disorders have been catalogued to date, but the underlying genetic causes of less than 20 percent of those disorders have been discovered.Type of Studies ReviewedThe completion of the Human Genome Project (HGP) has made available the DNA sequence of all 24 human chromosomes, thereby allowing the localization of all human genes and, ultimately, determination of their function. Disease gene discovery is being expedited greatly by the data from the HGP, thereby paving the way for determination of the genetic etiology of most of these disorders.ResultsWhile most dental anomalies can severely affect patients' quality of life, they are not fatal, which makes multigenerational families with these disorders available for study. These families are invaluable for genetic studies. Despite this fact, the discovery of genes underlying non-syndromic dental anomalies has lagged behind that for anomalies affecting other organ systems. The authors present an overview of the methodologies of disease gene identification using hypodontia, which is one of the most common anomalies of the dentition, to illustrate the application of these principles.Clinical ImplicationsAn understanding of the advances in human genetics should inspire the practicing dental professional to ascertain whether a dental anomaly is inherited and, if so, work with a human geneticist to identify its underlying genetic mechanism.     

Human trafficking and the dental professional

Background“Human trafficking” is a term for a modern form of slavery. It is a criminal human rights violation and a significant health issue. Dental professionals can assist in recognizing victims of trafficking.MethodsThe author conducted a PubMed search of the English-language literature through May 2011, which yielded no articles meeting the search criteria “dentistry” and “human trafficking prostitution.” Given these results, the author reviewed articles published in medical journals, reports from both governmental and nongovernmental agencies and lay literature.ResultsThe author examines the present state of human trafficking and provides information—including specific questions to ask—to help dentists identify victims. In addition, the author suggests means of notifying authorities and assisting trafficking victims. He also examines the health care needs of these patients.ConclusionHuman trafficking is a global problem, with thousands of victims in the United States, including many women and children. Dentists have a responsibility to act for the benefit of others, which includes detecting signs of abuse and neglect.Clinical ImplicationsDental professionals are on the front lines with respect to encountering and identifying potential victims who seek dental treatment. Dentists can combat human trafficking by becoming informed and by maintaining vigilance in their practices.     

Preparing for the dental team: investigating the views of dental and dental care professional students.

There is growing evidence to support the contention that interprofessional education (IPE) at both pre and post-qualification levels will improve professionals' abilities to work more effectively in a team and to communicate more effectively with colleagues and patients. This body of evidence, however, is primarily concerned with nursing, medical and associated professionals and students, and there are few studies that include dental students and particularly where learning occurs with the dental care professions (DCP). The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes of dental and DCP students to IPE and to highlight some of the barriers to developing programmes for these students. It was also intended to examine the students' awareness of dental and DCP roles and responsibilities. Two questionnaires, the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS) and a dental roles and responsibilities questionnaire, were distributed to all 5 years of dental students (n = 189) based at Queen's University Belfast (QUB), both years of the dental hygiene students (n = 8) also based at QUB, as well as to final year dental nursing students based at Belfast Institute of Further and Higher Education (BIFHE) (n = 64). The results indicated that dental and DCP students had a positive attitude to IPE as a means to improve teamwork and communication skills but there are potential obstacles as demonstrated by the differing perceptions of each of the three groups about the roles of the other. Some aspects of practice, involving personal care and advice to patients, were regarded by all groups as a shared role but the dental hygiene students regarded themselves as having a shared role in several tasks identified by dental and dental nurse students as the sole role of the dentist. Dental hygiene students in this study did not see their role as primarily to support the dentist but more as a partner in care. Professional identity and its development are issues that must be considered by dental and DCP educators developing IPE initiatives.