EDUCATION. Almost all the foreign dentists who recently began their supplementary training at Sahlgrenska Academy hail from Syria. Meet Hamza and Manar, two Syrian dentists eager to be allowed to start work in Sweden.
Hamza Kayssar and Manar Yousef first met when they recently became classmates at Gothenburg’s Institute of Odontology. Both are dentists educated in Syria, and both left their homeland just over two years ago. Now here in Gothenburg, both are working hard to obtain their Swedish dental license.
Eager to get back to helping patients
Manar Yousef lives in Hisingen with her husband, a pharmacist who has already found work. The couple have three children who attend school.
“We chose to leave Syria for our children’s sake. It’s not safe for them there and the situation is only getting worse. Here our children have a future that wouldn’t have been possible in Syria, and I want to show them that they can achieve their goals if they’re willing to work for them,” says Manar, who is eager to stress how thankful she is for the help and support she has received here in Sweden:
“I want to work as a dentist again and to help patients here in Sweden. It will feel good when I’m able to start giving back to Swedish society.”
Manar has worked as a general dentist for 14 years, both in Syria and in Saudi Arabia. Since coming to Sweden she has focused on learning the language, both through the state-funded Swedish for Immigrants (SFI) course and through an internship within the Swedish Public Dental Service.
She has already passed half of the tests administered by Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare. Manar says of her training:
“I notice that there are some things I don’t quite understand when I read about them on my own, but that become much clearer when the teachers here at the Institute of Odontology explain them, and I can get good answers to my questions.”
Foreign dentists wishing to obtain a Swedish license to practice can take a number of different routes: the National Board of Health and Welfare’s proficiency test is one, and the one-year program taught at the University of Gothenburg or Karolinska Institutet is another. Students have the opportunity to apply for a dental license after graduating from the Supplementary Program for Dentists from Non-EU Countries (KUT Program).
Oral and maxillofacial surgeon almost ready for work
Hamza Kayssar is 29 years old and was in the middle of his specialist training to become an oral and maxillofacial surgeon when he realized it was high time to leave Syria. He relates:
“I had a fine job at a good clinic at the hospital in Damascus. Now I’m fighting to get back to a similar position, and I’m very grateful that Swedish society gives us so much help. I hope I can show my gratitude by starting work as a dentist here in Sweden soon.”
Hamza currently commutes to school in Gothenburg from Falköping, where he lives with his wife, who is also a dentist. Like Manar, Hamza has passed several of the National Board of Health and Welfare’s tests, but believes that the program taught at the university will be the fastest way to obtain his license:
“It was my dream to be accepted to the University of Gothenburg, and I’m very thankful that I have been given this opportunity,” he says.
Hamza’s wife also hopes to be accepted to the KUT Program in Gothenburg next year.
Dentists in Sweden work within an impressive organization, Hamza feels. He has already completed training in the computerized journal system T4, which makes it easy for dentists to see new patients’ records and to view previous x-rays. The system is also directly connected to Sweden’s Social Insurance Agency and the National Board of Health and Welfare. There is no such system in Syria, Hamza explains:
“The system we used in Syria was less advanced, and we didn’t have general guidelines for treating patients, such as those compiled by Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare.”
A class brimming with energy
Almost every student in the Gothenburg class is Syrian, with the exception of three students from Tunisia, Russia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The atmosphere in the class is good, and the teachers are amazing, according to Manar:
“We receive good information at an advanced academic level. The teachers are friendly and answer all our questions. I think Swedish students are probably less talkative than we are. We’re a very active class with lots of energy,” she says with a smile.
If past experience is anything to go by, the likelihood that both Manar and Hamza will reach their goal of obtaining a Swedish license is very high. Around 70 students have completed the program so far, and all except one have obtained their licenses. Also, almost all of them have found employment within Sweden’s dental service.
“This year’s group is focused, hopeful, and very positive, just like the other groups have been,” says Professor Jan Olsson, Director of Studies for the Supplementary Program for Dentists Holding Degrees from Non-EU/EEA Countries or Switzerland at Sahlgrenska Academy.
The Swedish Model
The program aims to familiarize foreign dentists with what is known as “the Swedish Model,” which is characterized in part by its focus on preventive care.
“Practically all the dentists studying the KUT Program received their basic training in countries where patients only visit the dentist when it’s an emergency, such as when they’re in pain or when a damaged tooth needs repairing. There are no regular check-ups, which are important in preventing and detecting early signs of illness,” says Olsson.
Another distinctive feature of the Swedish Model is its dental care program for children and adolescents, under which residents aged 3-20 years are regularly called to dental appointments that are free of charge and that include orthodontics. This free child and adolescent dental care service provides excellent opportunities for residents to maintain good oral health through its strong prophylactic focus and regular check-ups starting from an early age. A major section of the KUT Program is devoted to teaching dental care for children and adolescents.
It has become apparent that KUT’s foreign dentists need added training in diagnostics, in particular. To meet this need, the program includes a fairly comprehensive course in radiology. Last but not least, electronic journal systems, rules and regulations, and the documentation requirements within Swedish dental care are additional challenges that the program must prepare the students for before they move on to practical training in the workplace—a 14-week internship with the Swedish Public Dental Service under one of two county councils, which is the final phase of the one-year program.
Major interest
The KUT Program has been taught at Sahlgrenska Academy since 2010.
“The students studying the KUT Program reflect the refugee situation in Europe. In the initial years we had many students from Iraq, but in recent times the majority have been from Syria. This year, more than 80 percent of the students are Syrians,” says Olsson, Director of Studies for the KUT Program at Gothenburg’s Institute of Odontology.
Gaining admission to the KUT Program for non-European dentists offered in Gothenburg is far from easy. This year there were 168 applicants, around 40 of whom were called to an interview for the 16 available places.
“We have plenty of applicants to the program. This year we’re switching to a new syllabus that will allow for a greater intake in future years, but first we need to analyze how well the new syllabus achieves its aims,” Olsson explains.
Doctors and nurses from non-EU countries can also supplement their training through the KUL and KUS programs offered at Sahlgrenska Academy.
BY: ELIN LINDSTRÖM CLAESSEN
