REMOVABLE PARTIAL DENTURE DESIGN HABITS IN GENERAL DENTAL PRACTICE IN SWEDEN

An investigation was made concerning Swedish general dental practitioners' habits in removable partial denture design and their opinion of the undergraduate training programme in this matter. The investigation showed that many dentists failed to provide adequate prescriptions and that they relied heavily on the dental technician for partial denture design. A clear majority of the participants, educated at Umea dental school, considered the undergraduate training programme to be adequate, whilst a similar percentage educated at the Gothenburg dental school was dissatisfied. The faculties in Stockholm and Malmo were placed between Umea and Gothenburg in this respect. The majority of the participants in this survey declared that the opportunity to attend small group postgraduate courses in the subject was desirable. A prerequisite for dentists to have control of the treatment they are responsible for, is that they at least have the necessary knowledge. This knowledge may have to be achieved after qualification instead of during their undergraduate training.