The effect of an extramural education program on the perceived clinical competence of dental hygiene students.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of an extramural rotation on dental hygiene student self-perceptions of competence in specific clinical areas. Dental hygiene students attending one midwestern university from 1992 through 1998 rated their perceived level of competence on nineteen dimensions of dental hygiene practice prior to beginning a four-week extramural rotation and again at the completion of the rotation. Results indicated that student perceptions of competence improved significantly on six of the nineteen dimensions in each of the study years. Study results suggest that an extramural rotation is a valuable component of a dental hygiene curriculum to enhance student self-perceptions of clinical competence.