Dentists' responses about the effectiveness of continuing education activities

Objective: To report the responses of dentists about the effectiveness of continuing education (CE) activities. Methods: This cross-sectional study involved the administration of a pilot-tested questionnaire amongst dentists from different cities of the eastern province of Saudi Arabia. A calculated sample of dentists (n = 323) was approached in person to collect their responses about CE activities they attended during the last one year. Descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed. Results: The response rate was 79.5% as 257 dentists returned completed questionnaires. There were 54.9% male and 45.1% female participants (mean age 31.18 +/- 12.4 years). The majority of participants reported an improvement in knowledge (79.8%), a motivation for learning (79.8%), and quality of dental care (73.9%) as a result of CE activities. More than two-thirds recognised the importance of CE courses for maintaining licensure in dentistry, and 91.1% felt the need to increase CE activities. Logistic regression models showed that male participants were less likely (OR = 0.48, P = 0.05) than female counterparts to report an improvement in clinical skills. Having a private job (OR = 2.38 P = 0.005) and >10 years since graduation (OR = 1.84, P = 0.05) were associated with an improvement in clinical skills. Believing in the importance of CE activities for maintaining licensure was significantly associated with the effectiveness of CE activities in improving knowledge (OR = 2.76, P = 0.01), clinical skills (OR = 2.02, P = 0.04) and patient satisfaction (OR = 2.22, P = 0.01). Conclusion: The majority of dentists recognised that CE activities were effective in improving their knowledge, clinical practice, quality of patient care and motivation for learning.