The University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Dentistry’s Pediatric Dentistry Residency Program will expand to include two additional residents a year for a two-year track program. This expansion will take effect July 1, 2019.
The opportunity is a certificate-only CODA approved track available for applicants who already hold an advanced degree or a certificate in another specialty. Training sites will include UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital (BCH) Oakland, UCSF Parnassus, UCSF-BCH San Francisco (Mission Bay), and other sites.
Pediatric Dentistry already has a three-year program that includes a master’s degree in oral and craniofacial sciences. Both tracks are administered under the current Pediatric Residency Program. The three-year track accommodates 15 residents. The two-year track will accommodate four residents, two in each year.
“Most other pediatric residency programs in the country are two years,” said Ray Stewart, DMD, MS, interim chair of the Division of Pediatric Dentistry. “This two-year track would align UCSF with what’s currently available.”
Training at UCSF-BCH Oakland will include emergency call coverage and clinical services at the hospital facilities and at the onsite outpatient dental clinic, La Clínica de La Raza. A Federally Qualified Health Center, La Clínica has an affiliation agreement with UCSF-BCH Oakland and the UCSF School of Dentistry. All training is under the supervision of UCSF faculty.
In July, UCSF-BCH Oakland and La Clínica opened a 5,000-square-foot facility adjacent to the main hospital. The site includes eight chairs in the open bay, three quiet room/sedation units, one exam/consultation room, and one X-ray/panorex room. The program’s support staff includes eight dental assistants and one hygienist at the Oakland site.
The new track is designed to offer opportunities for clinicians seeking training in the specialty. The academic and clinical resources of UCSF Health Sciences and UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals provide the experience and training to advance careers in academia, community public health, or private practice, according to the school.
In addition to the academic and clinic opportunities afforded at UCSF-BCH San Francisco, the school’s affiliation with UCSF-BCH Oakland provides experience in treating pediatric dental trauma in the emergency department as well as children with other sub-medical specialties, the school adds.
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