• TEACHING & LEARNING
• Feb 2024
• Bulletin

Immersive Videos Enhance Paediatric Dentistry Training

Faculty staff received HKU Teaching Development Grant Award

Immersive videos can bring real-life scenarios to training.

A project led by Professor Phoebe Lam, Clinical Assistant Professor in Paediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics, and funded by the HKU Teaching Development Grant, is taking dentistry training to new heights. Using immersive virtual reality and augmented reality technology, students can now practice clinical procedures in a simulated environment without compromising patient safety. With interactive features like patient history, radiographs and clinical complications, the cutting-edge technology enhances students' critical thinking and clinical skills.

Undergraduate dental students often face challenges in providing dental care to children, as pre-clinical training may not fully replicate the behaviours and complexities encountered in real-life scenarios. To address this challenge, the Faculty has adopted a learning platform of Vicarious Learning Dialogue videos (VLDV) to facilitate clinical skill teaching in paediatric dentistry. The project titled “Development of vicarious learning dialogue videos to support clinical skills learning in paediatric dentistry – a flipped-classroom approach” has received the HKU Teaching Development Grant (TDG) in 2023.

These VLDV captures authentic treatment situations where undergraduate students interact with their paediatric patients. These videos focus on chairside one-to-one learning dialogues, in which the teacher guides the students’ understanding, problem-solving, and clinical decision-making skills. Novel key decision point moments are also added in the video to enhance the problem-solving skills of students.

Professor Phoebe Lam hopes to raise students’ preparedness for clinical practice.

Professor Lam emphasized the importance of accurate clinical judgment, “A single incorrect decision can have far-reaching consequences for children. Teaching students how to make informed and precise judgement is crucial during their training.”

In the next stage of the project, the team obtained another TDG in 2024 for the project: "Proficiency-based virtual reality training in Paediatric Dentistry – Development of an Immersive and Interactive virtual environment for pulpotomies". By utilizing virtual and augmented reality technology, students can learn and practice clinical procedures repeatedly, without putting actual patients at risk.

“The project is truly a collaborative effort involving different team members who share a common goal: to enhance students' preparedness for clinical practice and boost their confidence in treating children,” added Professor Lam.

Through these innovative initiatives, HKU Dentistry is at the forefront of transforming dental education, equipping students with the necessary skills and expertise to provide outstanding dental care to children.