The “Hospital Dentistry” Project

Abstract

During higher education, dental students learn various invasive procedures which may cause adverse reactions in patients. However, these students are not prepared to face these situations properly. This study reports a project carried out at the Hospital de Caridade e Beneficência de Cachoeira do Sul, whose purpose was to provide dental students with further theoretical knowledge and practice on first aid procedures. The project also taught students how to administer drugs and check vital signs. Concurrently, an assessment of the oral health of patients was carried out, as well as of how the hospital promoted oral hygiene among patients. The purpose of this study was to make dental practitioners aware of the importance of knowing first aid procedures, which are of fundamental importance for the life of patients. With regard to the hospital’s assessment, we observed that oral hygiene of the patients was not adequately practiced. Some patients were submitted to clinical examination, and it was observed that many of them wore prostheses, most of them inadequate ones. Some patients also presented candidiasis or other pathoses related to poor oral hygiene. The conclusions showed the need to give daily recommendations to hospitalized patients or even to hire a dentist to become part of the hospital’s staff.