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Socially accountable dentists of the future: Community-based learning for recruitment of community-minded students

BDJ Student (2025)Cite this article

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‘Hello, my name is Kenice, and I am a first-year dental student. How can I help you today?' This is our normal introduction to patients, but how did I get here, and why is it important?

I am a first year BDS student at the Peninsula Dental School at the University of Plymouth. My mum is from Malaysia, and she came over to the UK in the late 1980s, so she was a first-generation immigrant; my dad on the other hand moved from Hong Kong to the UK with his family.

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References

  1. Tredwin C, Hanks S, Witton R. Dental education in primary care: 14 years of Peninsula Dental School. Br Dent J 2022; 233: 1-3.

  2. LDC Confederation. What is a UDA? 2024. Online information available at https://ldc.org.uk/what-is-a-uda/ (accessed July 2025).

  3. Plessas A, Paisi M, Bryce M. Mental health and wellbeing interventions in the dental sector: a systematic review. Evid Based Dent 2022; 23: 66-72.

  4. Thayer T. Britain is now a dental desert: it's time to save NHS dentistry. Br Dent J 2024; 236: 1-2.

  5. Association of Dental Groups. The urgent need to level up access. 2022. Online information available at https://www.theadg.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/ADG-Report_The-urgent-need-to-level-up-access_April-2022_V3.pdf (accessed July 2025).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Peninsula Dental School, Plymouth, United Kingdom

    Kenice Chan

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  1. Kenice Chan
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Correspondence to Kenice Chan.

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Chan, K. Socially accountable dentists of the future: Community-based learning for recruitment of community-minded students. BDJ Student (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41406-025-1545-5

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