Methodological approach to generate reflection and reflective notes

The objective of this data note is twofold: 1) to illustrate the methodological approach used to generate guided reflections at undergraduate level aided by a patient-based vignette portraying an individual with a history of substance use and mental health disorders; 2) to provide a summary of the raw data set in the form brief educational reflections submitted anonymously by undergraduate dental and dental hygiene students. These reflections were used in our recent publication titled ‘The role of an educational vignette to teach dental students on issues of substance use and mental health disorders at the University of British Columbia: An exploratory Qualitative study. By offering the reader with a road map to generate such reflections, and a summary of the reflections themselves, we hope to engage other dental schools in planning their educational teaching activities on issues pertaining to mental health and substance use for dental and dental hygiene students as we have advocated over the years.

Methods
Data were in the form of personal reflections and were obtained by asking undergraduate dental students at the University of British Columbia to reflect freely on issues of stigma and discrimination towards substance use and mental health disorders as a socially responsible provider. These anonymous reflections were prompted by an educational vignette posed during a 2,5hrs didactic session, and had a maximum of 300 characters.