Rate My Professor Priyangika Konthasingha

Dr. Priyangika Konthasingha is a Senior Professional Practice Fellow in the Discipline of Oral Health, Department of Oral Sciences, School of Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, within the Health Sciences Division at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. She plays a significant role in the education and training of oral health professionals, focusing on clinical practice and community oral health. As co-coordinator of DEOH104 Clinical Oral Health Practice, a full-year campus-based paper for Bachelor of Oral Health (BOH) students, she oversees lectures, practical sessions, tutorials, and workshops that introduce clinical procedures used in oral health therapy. The course emphasizes achieving clinical competence for safe operation in clinical environments and executing fundamental procedures as prerequisites for patient management. Recommended resources include Cameron and Widmer's Handbook of Pediatric Dentistry (2021), Darby and Walsh Dental Hygiene: Theory and Practice (2024), and Van Beek's Dental Morphology (1983). She also contributes to DEOH301 Community Oral Health & Promotion and serves as paper coordinator for DENT104, providing clinical teaching as a Professional Practice Fellow during the University of Otago's undergraduate dental program.

In her academic contributions, Dr. Konthasingha engages in research pertinent to dental education, particularly assessing graduate preparedness and student perceptions. She co-authored the peer-reviewed article 'Comparison of self-perceived competence of recent dental graduates from the Universities of Otago and Dalhousie,' published in 2023 in the European Journal of Dental Education (PMID: 35102647). Collaborating with Lee Ann Adam, Michael Adel Shawky Georgy, Alison Margaret Meldrum, Joanne Maree Oranje, and Rohan Mehul Sejpal, the study surveyed recent graduates to compare self-perceived competencies across domains such as orthodontics and oral and maxillofacial surgery, revealing curriculum-related differences between the institutions. This work highlights her interest in enhancing dental training outcomes. Furthermore, she participates in the Undergraduate Studies Committee for Oral Health and was involved in the Dental Council of New Zealand's accreditation review of the Otago Faculty of Dentistry, demonstrating her commitment to program quality and standards. Her professional contact is listed in university directories.