Ashwin C Shetty, Nora Meshal Al Rasheed 

ABSTRACT

Aim:To investigate dental interns’ attitudes towards communication skills learning and the association between their attitudes and demographic and education-related characteristics. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional survey using a self-administered twenty-six-item adapted Dental Communication Skills Attitude Scale (DCSAS) that contained both positive (PAS) and negative (NAS) attitude subscales was carried out targeting all dental interns at the Riyadh Colleges of Dentistry and Pharmacy (RCsDP). Participants’ demographic and education related variables were also recorded. Relationship of the positive and negative attitudes with these variables was determined using appropriate statistical tests such as Mann-Whitney U and Spearman's rho. Result : A total of 152 dental interns completed the survey, yielding a response rate of 60percent. The overall median PAS scores and NAS scores were 52 and 34.5 respectively. Dental interns with more negative attitudes tended to be male(p<0.05)and those with more positive attitudes tended to non-Saudi nationals (p<0.05). Conclusion:This study found that dental interns have positive and negative attitudes towards learning communication skills. These attitudes were significantly associated with certain background attributes. There is a need for integrating communication skills course in the dental curriculum.