An Innovative Approach to Operating Room Simulation with Dental Hygiene Student Preparedness and Awareness: An iEXCEL Interprofessional Pilot Project

Introduction/Purpose: This study examines the preparedness, awareness, and empathy of senior dental hygiene students during an operating room simulation at UNMC’s iEXCEL. A lack of confidence and limited hands-on learning opportunities in the operating room rotation contribute to anxiety, restricting students’ ability to develop essential clinical competencies. To address this issue, a convergent mixed methods approach was used to evaluate the impact of simulation-based learning of a dental surgical case on students' readiness for real-world scenarios while fostering empathy for special needs patients requiring treatment under general anesthesia. Methods: A total of 23 second-year dental hygiene students participated in pre- and post-simulation assessments via REDCap. Quantitative data were gathered using Likert scale questions (1=strongly disagree to 4=strongly agree), while qualitative insights were obtained through open-ended responses. The simulation consisted of a pre-brief, four rotation stations, and a group debrief. Results: Data analysis included a paired t-test to compare pre- and post-Likert responses, as well as Fischer’s exact test to identify associations between thematic elements and survey findings. A p-value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results revealed a significant increase in student preparedness post-simulation (p=0.0164). Thematic analysis confirmed that “prior knowledge/past experiences” demonstrated strong associations with improved empathy (p=0.0238) and reduced anxiety (p=0.0215). These findings suggest that structured simulations can effectively enhance students' clinical competencies while mitigating stress related to operating room experiences. Conclusion: This study underscores the importance of integrating simulation-based learning into dental hygiene curricula to optimize student readiness for real-world practice. By fostering preparedness, awareness, and empathy, such simulations can play a crucial role in shaping competent and confident professionals. Future plans include expanding the simulation to include dental students and refining survey questions based on pilot insights.