LAP Lambert Academic Publishing The Importance of Teamwork in Dentistry: A study of shared learning between trainee dental technicians and undergraduate dental students

Interprofessional education is a challenge to all professional educators and participants as the participants inevitably bring with them their essential professional differences and as a result both practical and philosophical barriers exist. This book provides a rich insight into the challenges faced by trainee dental technicians and undergraduate dental students during a shared learning exercise in a combined UK university dental school and hospital. This work uses a qualitative approach within a phenomenological framework to examine whether interprofessional learning between trainee dental technicians and undergraduate dental students offered any professional and occupational specific disciplinary developmental benefits or disadvantages. The study also contributes to a currently under-theorised account of how relationships developed between these two groups may affect longer-term professional development. At a time when higher education is in the midst of profound change, this work provides valuable evidence regarding curriculum design and informs educators and policy developers on how to maximise learning outcomes. About the Author Dr Michael Reeson BA(Hons), MA, PhD, is Chief Instructor in the School of Dental Technology at Newcastle Dental Hospital, UK. His research asks whether shared learning between trainee dental technicians and undergraduate dental students promotes a better understanding of each others’ professional roles and effective interprofessional teamwork.