Interest in Dental Hygiene Therapy: a study of dental hygienists in Maine.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the awareness of registered dental hygienists (RDHs), licensed in the state of Maine, regarding the midlevel dental hygiene therapist (DHT) provider model and to gather data regarding the degree of interest in enrolling in a DHT program.Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional study design with a non-probability purposive sampling of actively practicing RDHs in the state of Maine (n=1,284) was utilized for the web-based survey. Survey questions included awareness in the passage of DHT legislation, level of interest pursuing education and licensure in this midlevel provider model. Data was collected over a three-week period. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were used for data analysis.Results: Response rate was 21% (n=268). Sixty-five percent of respondents expressed interest in enrolling in a DHT program and 40% of those respondents stated a willingness to enroll in a DHT program within the coming year. Although willing to travel 25-50 miles, a majority of respondents preferred programs incorporating online components combined with clinical training completed in nearby communities. Themes emerging from the open-ended question regarding DHT program feasibility and appeal included: convenience, flexibility, cost/affordability, and independent or collaborative practice.Conclusion: Study outcomes indicated interest exists among Maine RDHs regarding the DHT provider role and enrollment in a DHT program. Although there are no DHT programs currently being offered in the New England states, results suggest further investigation is warranted regarding the development of a DHT program in the Northeastern United States.

Evaluation of Tier 5 Medical Training Initiative opportunities in dentistry.

This paper reviews the first two years of overseas postgraduate dental placements in the UK under the Medical Training Initiative (MTI), which is part of Tier 5 government authorised exchange. Details of the objectives of the programme, the trainees appointed, specialty areas studied and length of training are described. The methods used for assessing the training are reported. It is concluded that the objectives of the MTI have been met in dentistry and that Tier 5 provides a valuable opportunity for establishing international links in postgraduate clinical dentistry.

Associations among distributions of dental postgraduate residents, dentists and clinical training facilities in Japan.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the correlation and distribution of dental postgraduate residents, dentists and clinical training facilities in each prefecture to analyze the regional distribution and supply of dentists in Japan. The results were also compared with referential data for medicine. The coefficient of correlation between the dentist index and dental postgraduate resident index was r = 0.76 (P < 0.001) in 2006. The distribution (coefficient of variation) was greatest for the dental postgraduate resident index. The numbers of dentists per 100,000 population in prefectures with dental colleges were significantly higher in 1986, 1996 and 2006 for each comparison (P < 0.001). Coefficients of correlation between dentist index and dental postgraduate resident index were r = 0.65 (P < 0.01) in prefectures with dental colleges and r = 0.11 in those without dental colleges in 2006. The prefectures with high level of numbers of cooperative-type clinical training facilities had dental colleges.

Medicare program; hospital direct and indirect graduate medical education policy changes; notice. Final rule; clarification.

This notice clarifies the availability of certain physician salary proxy data for purposes of the hospital direct and indirect graduate medical education policy adopted in the "Medicare Program; Prospective Payment System for Long-Term Care Hospitals RY 2008: Annual Payment Rate Updates, and Policy Changes; and Hospital Direct and Indirect Graduate Medical Education Policy Changes" final rule that appeared in the May 11, 2007 Federal Register.

Office of the Secretary; TRICARE; changes included in the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2005; TRICARE dental program. Final rule.

The Department is publishing this final rule to implement sections 711 and 715 of the Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 (NDAA for FY05), Public Law 108-375. Specifically, that legislation makes young dependents of deceased Service members eligible for enrollment in the TRICARE Dental program when the child was not previously enrolled because of age, and authorizes post-graduate dental residents in a dental treatment facility of the uniformed services under a graduate dental education program accredited by the American Dental Association to provide dental treatment to dependents who are 12 years of age or younger and who are covered by a dental plan established under 10 U.S.C. 1076a. This adopts the interim rule published on September 21, 2005 (70 FR 55251).

Periodontology as a recognized dental speciality in Europe.

The impetus of the Bologna Process under the auspices of European Union governments has raised enormous expectations. It is the major educational change in Europe within the last 50 years and all the focus from university institutions, learned societies and thematic networks has shifted to this process, with the aim of developing consensus schemes in order to arrive at the expected European Convergence in Higher Education (to be completed by 2010). Dentistry as one of the health professions with clear Educational Standards, as defined by the European Dental Directives, is also reviewing its educational processes within this Bachelor-Master-Doctorate scheme and evaluating how the current and future dental specialities should be accommodated within this framework. Among these specialities, Periodontology is currently considered a formal dental speciality in 11 countries belonging to the EU however it lacks this legal status in the rest of the 14 EU countries. The purpose of this position paper is to provide evidence for the need for a recognized specialty in Periodontology at European level focusing on both the educational and professional perspective, with the hope of providing discussions that may contribute to facilitate its legal establishment as a new dental speciality in Europe.

European community legislation concerning schools of specialisation in orthodontics: the inexplicable inertia of Italy--contradictions and open issues.

Orthodontics was the first discipline to be acknowledged as such within the field of dentistry, initially in the USA and subsequently in Europe. The structural changes that led to the birth of the European Union (EU) laid the foundations for the free circulation of professions and services. Nevertheless a deep discrepancy in the quality of training of practitioners from different countries became apparent. It was necessary to address this issue and regulate the training process in order to guarantee a degree of uniformity. Up to this time only the duration of the School of Specialisation in Orthodontics has been set at a minimum of three years. While moving towards an increasing degree of integration of the various EU countries, it becomes paramount to be able to establish a School of Specialisation in Orthodontics with high academic standards based on the Erasmus Programme and above all to be able to award a specialisation degree which is acknowledged first of all in the country where it is issued and also on a wider European level. Freedom of circulation of intellectual activities requires the formal acknowledgement of a qualification, namely the Specialisation in Orthodontics. Also to that end, EFOSA (European Federation of Specialists in Orthodontics) was founded. Furthermore the European Community has, in the meantime, ruled that medical trainees should be remunerated for their work. Dentistry and its specialisations should not follow the model of Medicine given that the two are completely distinct, but many believe that the duration of the School of Specialisation in Orthodontics has to be set as the same as the medical specialisations.

TRICARE; changes included in the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2005; TRICARE Dental Program. Interim final rule.

The Department is publishing this interim final rule to implement sections 711 and 715 of the Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 (NDAA-05), Public Law 108-375. Specifically, that legislation makes young dependents of deceased Service members eligible for enrollment in the TRICARE Dental Program when the child was not previously enrolled because of age, and authorizes post-graduate dental residents in a dental treatment facility of the uniformed services under a graduate dental education program accredited by the American Dental Association to provide dental treatment to dependents who are 12 years of age or younger and who are covered by a dental plan established under 10 U.S.C. 1076a. This rule also corrects certain references in 32 CFR 199.13. The rule is being published as an interim final rule with comment period in order to comply with statutory effective dates. Public comments are invited and will be considered for possible revisions to the final rule.

Propuesta de postgrado en Endodoncia / Proposal of postdegree in edondoncia

El presente trabajo de propuesta de postgrado en la especialidad de Edodoncia, sé presenta en virtud a la necesidad urgente de contribuir a superar los problemas de salud bucal de la población boliviana y en forma especial en la prevención, diagnóstico y tratamiento de las lesiones pulpares y tejidos peri apicales, a través de la capacitación y desarrollo de habilidades de los Odontólogos Generales. Está constituido por capítulos en los que en la primera fase se refiere a la introducción y marco teórico, en el cual se describen diferentes tendencias curriculares y modelos y desarrollo de postgrado en relación con el programa propuesto, realizando un análisis de los diferentes programas de especialización ejecutados ya en diferentes países con la finalidad de conocer los avances en su fase de evaluación después de su ejecución. Se presenta la propuesta de diseño del programa en sistema modular en el tiempo de un año con actividad teórica y práctica a desarrollarse en la Facultad de Odontología de la Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, y se propone una metodología de evaluación del diseño planteado a objeto de verificar el contenido y la calidad del profesional postgraduado formado y si ambos guardan pertinencia a los objetivos propuestos pudiendo ser modificados en el futuro enfunción a los resultados obtenidos.

Re-accreditation, re-certification and the postgraduate database.

A consultation paper from the GDC has suggested that there will be a re-accreditation and re-certification procedure for dental practitioners which will require evidence of continuing postgraduate education. There is debate as to how that information should be held and who should hold it.

History of federal legislation in health professions educational assistance in dental public health, 1956-97.

Health professions education assistance in dental public health has been congressionally authorized in one form or another during the last four decades. The US Department of Health and Human Services (and its predecessor, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare) has been a focal point for managing these federal programs. This report tracks the history of relevant national legislation, beginning in the 1950s with the Health Amendment Acts of 1956 and continuing most recently with the Health Professions Education Extension Amendments of 1992. The number of dental public health professionals trained and available to provide expertise and leadership to improve community oral health status has been tied to the presence and intensity of federal programming in this area.