Effectiveness of an Interactive Workshop in Increasing Awareness About Oral Cancer Screening Among Dental Undergraduate Students: A Pre- and Post-experimental Study

Background Oral cancer (OC) screening plays a pivotal role in the early detection of OCs, which helps improve the patient's prognosis. Hence, training students is essential to facilitate the opportunistic screening of patients. With this objective, we arranged an interactive workshop and assessed the program's effectiveness. Methods This experimental study was conducted on 67 interns in a dental college, employing a pre-post experimental design. The participants were asked to answer a questionnaire before and after the workshop. This self-administered questionnaire, consisting of 45 questions, tested the students' knowledge, attitude, and skills regarding OC screening. The workshop was not just about lectures - it was a hands-on experience. Interactive lectures were conducted on the epidemiology, causative and risk factors, clinical presentation, and early detection methods of OC and potentially malignant disorders (PMDs). A practical demonstration of toluidine blue was also a vital part of the workshop. Results Awareness lectures and hands-on training significantly improved knowledge (t-value = -19.681, p = 0.001) and attitude (t-value = -5.629, p = 0.001) before and after the workshop. Conclusion Periodic training of dental students for OC screening enables better clinical transition and promotes early diagnoses of OC and PMDs.