3.

5 INFORMATION MANAGEMENT AND CRITICAL THINKING

As such, the General Objectives of the program include the formation of

professionals with the ability to evaluate, diagnose and classify systemic and
dental illnesses in human beings in order to devise integrated treatments for the
stomatognathic system so as to restore functionality and esthetic characteristics.”

The Exit Profile states that graduates should have, among other distinctive traits:

KNOWLEDGE
A. Medical and dental diagnostics.
B. Preventive and restorative and treatments of dental illnesses.
C. Dental prosthesis
D. Maxillofacial and oral surgery
E. Specialties: Orthodontics, Pediatric Dentistry.

SKILLS
A. Identify and prevent oral and systemic illnesses with oral
manifestations in dental patients.
B. Design treatment programs proposing an adequate multidisciplinary
approach.
C. Carry out treatment programs as established.
D. Prescribe medication and identify its interactions.
E. Establish efficient administration of a dental practice.
F. Deal with and apply sanitary regulations as well as those related with
the profession.

ATTITUDES AND VALUES.

A. Permanent renewal of knowledge in the dental field in order to ensure
quality treatment.
B. A reflective and critical attitude so as to identify societal health issues
and propose remedial strategies.
C. A reflective and critical attitude to the profession with an aim to
awareness of its possibilities and limitations.

A subject forming part of the integration of knowledge that contributes to the growth
of students are: Medical and Clinic Propedeutics ,Oral Pathology ,Surgery
,Managing Patients with Medical Problems, Fixed Prostheses , Total Prostheses,
Removable Prostheses, Occlusion, Medical Emergencies, Pediatric Dentistry,
Prosthodontics, Orthodontics, Comprehensive Dental Care Clinic.
The objectives of the courses, in the Methodological axis, which reinforces the
information Management and the critical thinking, are described below.  The
objective of the remaining courses have been described in previous paragraphs, so
we are not including them here to avoid repetitions, but all of them directly apply to
compliance with this standard, critical thinking and problem solving.
 
 
Management with a compartment of Research Methodology
On completion of the course, students will apply the tools that characterize the
scientific method in order to produce essays, articles on specialist themes and a
variety of current issues, utilizing different cognitive processes.

Research Workshop
On completion of the course, students will utilize the scientific method to carry out
formal research and write reports on this activity, basing their work on issues
relevant to their profession and their social context.

One very important objective of the Faculty of Dentistry is the form professionals
capable of critical thinking, reflection and taking decisions in a logical manner in
order to solve their patients’ oral health problems. For this reason, instructors
encourage their students to reflect at all possible moments, in particular during
clinical activities, exercising their thinking skills in the 5 levels of Comprehensive
Dental Care Clinic, as well as in other services such as the Clinics for Admissions
and Diagnostics, Emergency and Immediate Attention, Temporomandibular Joint
and Orthodontics, and also during surgical procedures in oral surgery. Other
challenging opportunities are those related to Social Service and Community
Brigades, where students are continuously called upon to demonstrate these skills
due to their involvement with social groups and pathological phenomena of a
different type to those that they come across in the conditions that prevail at the
University.

Students in later semesters must demonstrate a high degree of development in the

resolution of oral problems, as well as in administration, ethics etc. with regard to
(a) their interviewing of patients, (b) the process of diagnosis of systemic and oral
problems, (c) the establishment of a prognosis for these, (d) in the identification of
patients at risk from tooth decay, oral cancer or periodontal disease, (e) decisions
to seek consultations with dental specialists, (f) requests for laboratory studies, x-
Rays or other complementary studies in the process of designing treatment
options, and (g) medications prescription.

In situations which require them to formulate arguments, such as (a) the

presentation of clinical cases to tutors. (b) presentation of treatments and costs to
patients, (c) the design and implementation of preventive measures for patients, (d)
the development of clinical procedures, (e) the resolution of complications during
such procedures, (f) the development of administrative procedures, when faced
with ethical dilemmas, and (g) other daily activities, students are continually
demonstrating to their professors the stage of evolution they have reach with
regard to critical thinking.

The Tutorial Model of Clinical Attention favors the growth of the spirit of reflection in
students. Tutors are responsible for assigning patients and developmental
opportunities to the students who form part of the teams of which they are in
charge in accordance with the clinical course in progress, as well as monitoring
each student’s learning in order to ensure achievement of the volume and type of
activities required by the demands of students’ formation and development and
fostering their aptitude within the framework of established competencies. In
addition, tutors endorse treatment plans established in the clinic by supervisors,
along with their implementation and follow-up.

All Faculty instructors encourage students to pursue the personal quest for
knowledge and the personally enriching complementary research that will enable
them to construct arguments based on scientific evidence for the decisions that
they make concerning patients. Debate is also encouraged, the seeking of expert
opinion, but also respect for the personal opinions of students when based on
sound scientific grounds.