Leading the young Saudi Generation Y dentists in the 21st century

A generation is defined by Oxford dictionaries online as all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. Generation Y describes the generation born in the 1980s and 1990s, typically perceived as increasingly familiar with digital and electronic technology. The term “Generation Y” was the term given to the generation following Generation X. Millenials, Y Generation, Generation We, Echo boomers and many more terms have been used to describe this generation. Although the term Generation Y is used worldwide, there is no consensus over the exact birth dates that constitute this generation, therefore, resulting in much debate globally. The US, Canada, Australia and the UK utilize somewhat different years when statistically analyzing this generation. If we use the same concept in Saudi Arabia, we may presume that Generation Y includes the young generation of dentists who will be part of the future practitioners, educators, administrators and leaders in the dental community. This is particularly significant as currently there are several government and private dental colleges in Saudi Arabia which will increase the number of Generation Y graduates. The United Nations, World Population Prospects: 2008 revision reported that in Saudi Arabia the median age in 2009 was 24.3 years and is expected to be 36.6 in 2050. The 2010 Population Reference Bureau reported that in Saudi Arabia, youth constituted 27% of the working-age population in 2010. The expected percent change in the number of youth between 2010 and 2040 is 22%, which is expected to be negative in other countries. With this introduction we emphasize the importance of Generation Y graduates who are planning to choose their careers and how they want to develop them. They begin exploring whether they want to practice dentistry or be an administrator. They also begin to consider whether or not it would be better to be a general dentist or a specialist. There are advantages to each which should be clarified to them. Implementing certain parameters to engage and prepare young Saudi Generation Y dentists to be exceptional future practitioners, educators, administrators and leaders in the new global dental society is imperative. How much graduates learned in the dental colleges differ depending on many factors including the curriculum in each college. Regardless from which college they graduated, they are now ready for the next stage of their life. Young dentists need to have a common tool to help them understand and implement lifelong learning activities and put what they have learned into practice by enhancing and incorporating evidence-based dentistry, critical thinking, problem solving, communication, collaboration, creativity and innovation. Our role as a dental community is to provide guidance and to help prepare them, because this generation is different from those that have preceded them. They are talented high-performers who may need guidance in their aspiration for lifelong learning. There are many things that students do not learn in dental college and therefore, the road map to prepare a young generation of dentists to start a successful dental career in the 21st century is critical. To address these new challenges, I am calling on our administrators and leaders of the dental community, including but not limited to dental colleges, Ministry of Health, the Saudi Dental Society, different hospitals, Saudi Commission for Health Specialties, and dental industry sector to develop standards and criteria to assist the young generation of dentists in acquiring and augmenting their aspiration for lifelong learning activities and to create resources to gain those skills. These resources could be used to help generate dialogue and action between young dentists, administrators and leaders. In the next few lines I will highlight some of the aspects of Generation Y to help gain a better understanding of young dentists as they start their dental career. This may facilitate the development of best practices for engaging and developing preeminent future dentists and administrators, and make the best use of Generation Y dentists. This also may help in the management of intergenerational differences, break the gap between Generation Y and other generations and boost mentorship to accomplish the highest expectations for advancement. Bruce Tulgan of Rainmaker Thinking stated that Generation Y would be the fastest-growing and the most high-maintenance workforce in history. High expectations of themselves result in their aim to work faster and better than other workers. They want managers who are highly engaged in their professional development. They pursue ongoing learning and view colleagues as important resources from whom to gain knowledge. They want to make an important impression and impact on the first day. They are goal-oriented, prioritize family over work, confident, ambitious, achievement-oriented, team-oriented, loyal, committed, desire feedback and guidance, seek frequent praise and reassurance, seek balance between work and lifestyle, and they appreciate being kept in the loop. Most importantly; they are technology savvy and rely on it to perform their jobs better. They are armed with smart phones, tablets, laptops and other gadgets and are plugged-in 24 h a day, 7 days a week. They prefer to communicate through e-mail and text messaging rather than face-to-face contact and prefer webinars and online technology to traditional presentations. This is a generation of multitaskers who believe in their own self-worth and value such that they are not shy about trying to change their work environment. Saudi Generation Y dentists may have different preferences and expectations of work compared to those who grew up in other countries such as the US or Europe. Generation Y wants meaningful work and a concrete learning curve. Generation Y may benefit greatly from mentors who can help guide and develop their young careers. We need to understand and define their characteristics and meet their needs and to create for them an environment where creativity and independent thinking are looked upon as a positive phase in decision making. What young dentists will learn after graduation is critical. It provides them the opportunity to apply principles they have learned and to incorporate critical thinking, communication, creativity, and collaboration in their profession and improve their knowledge at their own pace. Young dentists should make lifelong learning a priority. However, lifelong learning does not mean condemning yourself to a stack of dusty textbooks. The whole paradigm of obtaining information has shifted. Seeking information used to be a strenuous task, but now information is just a few clicks away. However, seeking reliable knowledge and evidence-based information is not an easy task. Searching the internet and different websites will result in an enormous amount of information; however not all information is evidence-based. Young dentists need to learn how to utilize evidence-based dentistry in their practice, and the application of new knowledge/technologies to patient care. As technology plays a larger role in education, any plans concerning the future of education of young dentists must include an analysis of the technological trends and how they relate to their education. These trends need to be extrapolated in an attempt to predict the future of the impact of technology on the education of young dentists. Technologies now allow us to communicate both synchronously and asynchronously with peers around the world. The driving forces of Moore’s Law, technology fusion, and changing world circumstances are redefining the way our young dentists need to be taught. The challenge is to prepare the young dentists of today for a world of technologies yet undreamed of young dentists should learn to have a “to-learn” list, learn guided thinking, put what they have learned into practice, learn in groups, follow their intuition and learn information that they can use. Today we have an enormous opportunity to explore major development and modifications for Saudi Generation Y dentists. The dental community needs to recognize the needs of Saudi Generation Y dentists and develop strategies to move the profession forward by preparing them for the best. The focus should be on developing their strengths to provide structure and support for their professional growth. An appreciation for change as an ongoing and manageable process will enhance the viability of the dental community in a rapidly changing world and ultimately will benefit dental graduates and the communities they serve. We need to use all advances in every aspect of science and discovery to create models for the future and develop strategies to infuse new science and evidence-based critical appraisal skills into their experiences. All of these are essential skills that we will need to ensure their success, regardless of their future career paths. We should be determined to take a strong step forward to develop and implement our plans and to improve the education of young dentists. Blending educational technologies of high quality may provide a positive learning experience for young dentists to keep them up-to-date in a rapidly changing world. We should complement each other and with our collective efforts and thoughts stimulate efforts to accomplish a large degree of success for the young generation of dentists. Let this be an open and standing invitation to all the readers to become inspired to actually participate in supporting the young Saudi Generation Y dentists.

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