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Background: With the increasing advancement in the field of information technology, it's about time we realize that our future will be shaped by this field. With more and more people using smartphones, we need to adapt them to the medical field. Already many advancements in medical field are done thanks to the advancement of computer science. But we need to implement this into our teaching and learning as well. Almost all students and faculty members use smartphones in one way or another if we can utilize the smartphone to enhance the learning opportunities for our medical students, it would greatly benefit them. But before the implementation, we need to find out if our faculty is willing to adopt this technology. The objective of this study is to find out what are the perceptions of dental faculty members about using a smartphone as a teaching tool. Methodology: A validated questionnaire was distributed among the faculty members of all the dental colleges of KPK. The questionnaire had 2 sections. First one contains information regarding the demographics. The second one had questions related to the faculty members' perception regarding using a smartphone as a teaching tool. Results: The results of our study showed that the faculty (Mean 2.08) had positive perceptions regarding using a smartphone as a teaching tool. Conclusion: Most of the Dental Faculty members of KPK agree that smartphone can be used as a teaching tool, and it can have better outcomes if proper applications and teaching strategies are used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To develop entrustable professional activities for a one-year house job in dentistry. Study Design: Qualitative study (Interpretive Paradigm). Place and Duration of Study: Khyber College of Dentistry and Sardar Begum Dental College, Peshawar Pakistan, from Sep 2017 to May 2018. Methodology: A five-step approach was used to develop four EPAs for a one-year house job. Using maximum variation sampling, faculty members from eleven disciplines of dentistry working in public and private dental colleges of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and charge of training dental interns participated in the study. Three focus group interviews and three in-depth interviews were conducted. Data was transcribed and thematic analysis was done. Results: The EPAs were developed for a one-year house job using the five-step approach. This process resulted in developing the content of four EPAs in detail, analysing the results into competencies aligned with Pakistan medical and dental council, assessment methods such as multisource feedback, direct observation, mini CEX assessment with peer coaching and role modelling teaching strategies for each activity. Participants agreed on trusting the house officer to perform independently with a gradual shift of supervision scale from direct action to indirect and finally enacting the EPAs unsupervised. Conclusion: This study presents the foundation for using specific EPAs in dentistry, a step towards a competency-based approach. The content of EPAs for a transition period of a one-year house job in dentistry was developed using the 5-stage approach. These EPAs can provide explicit guidance for the engagement of dental house officers in clinical workplace activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study was conducted to evaluate the knowledge and attitude of undergraduate medical students toward research. Study Design: Cross sectional study. Setting: Private Medical Colleges of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Period: November 2018 to July 2019. Material & Methods: A total of 938 final year medical students participated in the study. A validated self administered questionnaire was used for the collection of data. The student’s perception was assessed through questionnaire based on 5-point Likert scale. For the assessment of knowledge MCQs were marked as 1 in case of correct answer and 0 in case of incorrect answer. Results: Out of 1300 students, 938 returned the questionnaire resulting in a 74% response rate. 481(51%) participants were male and 457(49%) were females. The participants had a mean knowledge score of 6.103 out of a total of 15 questions and mean attitude score of 76.29. Conclusion: This study concludes a low knowledge score coupled with a positive attitude of doing research. More attention must be placed on these parameters in the curriculum to improve student knowledge in health research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]