Curriculum for Special Care Dentistry: Are we there yet?

Abstract

A presented paper is reviewed for the Special Care Dentistry (SCD) teaching of dental undergraduates from different continents and compared it to the current SCD education scene in Malaysia. Related literature were reviewed together with the current updates of SCD in Malaysia as an overview to bridge the gap for SCD teaching, planning the learning outcomes, and the curriculum guidelines. It highlights the barriers, similarities, and the different approaches applied in Malaysia. Constructing the SCD curriculum and adhering to it is a challenge. Most countries will be bound to the local expectations and needs to be able to construct their national guidelines. The literature shows the difference in approach of teaching SCD globally. Different factors such as lack of SCD expertise, lack of disabled-friendly facilities, overloaded curriculum, and lack of educational resources were highlighted in the literature as factors that can halt the SCD education. Educators need to incorporate the learning outcomes, the local needs, and/or curriculum guidelines within their institutions to design the content of their own programs. The Malaysian experience can be an example of a southeast Asian approach in SCD education.