511-111 Society and Health

Semester

Contact

Subject Description

This subject covers the following areas: preventive dentistry; developmental perspectives and education; health science communication and research methods; applied behavioural science and community studies.

On completion of this subject, the student should:

Comprehend: the basic concepts of community and social structures and the implications for health and oral health; the principles of the aetiology and prevention of common oral diseases; the relevance of psychology and human development to health care and good dental practice; the principles of teaching methodologies and the common problem behaviours amongst patients, parents and health workers.

Demonstrate skills in: identification and charting of dental plaques; collating, graphing and interpreting data; and developing, presenting and evaluating small group instruction sessions for a variety of target groups.

Appreciate: the wisdom of health maintenance rather than the treatment of preventable disease; the dimensions of health education and health promotion within the delivery of dental, medical, allied health and educational services; the responsibilities of dental therapists, dental hygienists, and the dental profession toward the provision of preventive care and treatment of oral disease at individual and community levels; and the range of differing health care needs of individuals and groups within the community and diversity of the methods needed to provide them.

Assessment

One 2-hour written examination at the end of first semester 20%); one 2-hour written examination at the end of second semester (20%); and written assignments and practical reports throughout the year (60%). A pass is required in each paper for an overall pass in the subject.