Increasing dental and medical students’ understanding of race as a social construct

Abstract

AbstractPurposeTo improve health equity, dental and medical students must have a firm grasp of the proper use of race as a social construct. The purpose of this study was to determine the degree to which an innovative learning event affected students’ understanding of race as a social construct. It also sought to examine the effects that personally experienced and/or witnessed racism and previous education had on students’ responses to the learning event.MethodsIn 2022, all incoming first‐year dental (N = 48) and medical (N = 114) students completed an online pre‐matriculation assignment about the use of race in healthcare. Students initially completed an anonymous 14‐item pre‐survey and then read assigned publications, followed by answering questions about a real‐life vignette concerning the topic of race as a social construct. Students finished the assignment by completing an anonymous seven‐item post‐survey. Data from the pre‐ and post‐surveys were collected and analyzed to assess if differences existed among students and between the two surveys.ResultsDental and medical students were significantly more likely to endorse race as a social construct after the learning experience (p < 0.001). Students who had experienced discrimination or obtained training were more likely to define race as a social construct before and after the learning event.ConclusionDental and medical schools can increase students’ understanding of race as a social construct, rather than a biological construct, with educational interventions.