Orthodontic educational landscape in the contemporary context: Insights from educators

Abstract

We sought the perspectives of fourteen orthodontics educators on emerging trends and themes in the orthodontics educational landscape. The focus of this article was on four overarching areas: technology, workforce, research and clinical practice. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis showed that infusion of newer technologies is poised to change the way we train the next generation of orthodontists, open up new lines of enquiry, and alter the way we render clinical care. Areas of weakness include lack of adequate numbers of orthodontics faculty and lack of progress in Orthodontics research when compared to medical research. Our educational set up is at crucial juncture. We have to make sure that the pipeline of Orthodontics educators is well developed and our new-gen educators have the tools and skillset to adapt to the rapidly evolving healthcare landscape.

Context

Over the past decade, the Orthodontics landscape has changed rapidly to keep pace with infusion of newer technologies, increasing digitization, emphasis on personalized orthodontics care, and evolving practice models. In this narrative review, we sought the perspectives of orthodontics educators on what they thought were emerging issues and trends impacting the field of Orthodontics as related to education. We focused on four overarching areas pertaining to Orthodontics education: Technology, Workforce, Research, and Clinical Practice. We then conducted a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis of themes that the educators highlighted. We present insights from educators as an anthology.