Volume 8 • 2021 • Issue 5

“I wanted to know more about how to deliver curriculum the best way in dentistry,” says Dr. Cassim. “There are a lot resources put towards trying to figure out how nursing and medical students learn, but this kind of scholarship is relatively new to dentistry. I think there is room for improvement and change in how dentists are educated.” Dr. Cassim began his thesis project about how dental schools train students to treat adults with developmental disabilities, a group that faces many barriers to access care. Some of the Ethiopian students that Dr. Cassim had taught during his first trip in 2017 were now faculty at the dental school in Addis Ababa. He began to plan the trip for May 2021. Dr. Cassim’s thesis project found that most dental students— and by extension dentists—have the skills to care for adults with developmental disabilities, but because of lack of exposure and experience with the population, they don’t feel confident doing so. “I worked with this population at Mount Sinai as a dental student,” says Dr. Cassim. “We did basic preventive care and screening. We didn’t need to be extensively trained. We were able to effectively screen patients, clean their teeth, provide preventive care, sometimes get radiographs, which is what this population most often needs.” Dr. Cassim interviewed fourth-year dentals students about their skills and competencies. “There is a lot of emphasis on technical skills in dental education, and students had excellent technical skills. They were efficient and adaptable, and they also felt like they’d learned better communication skills, but they still didn’t feel like they had what they needed to work with this population,” he says. He concluded that with a small change of emphasis and a little more training in interpersonal skills, dental education could better prepare students to work with specific underserved patient populations. Participants in Junior Smiles, a community outreach program for kids and their families, focusing on oral health and preventive dental care. I’m passionate about clinical dentistry, but I’m also passionate about teaching. I want to do research and push the boundaries of what teaching in dentistry can be. Dr. Cassim at Weeneebayko General Hospital in Moose Factory, Ontario. 32 | 2021 | Issue 5 Issues and People