Home • Washington Post • NY Times • Dentristry & Curriculum • Lincoln Developmental Center
Dear Medicine Division Colleagues,
I would like to report some good news regarding dental education...
At it's July 30, 2004 meeting, the Commission on Dental Accreditation (of the
American Dental Association) adopted revisions to both the Accreditation
Standards for Dental Education Programs and the Accreditation Standards for
Dental Hygiene Education Programs with an implementation date of January 1,
2006.
Standard 2-26 of the Accreditation Standards for Dental Education Programs reads
as follows: "Graduates must be competent in assessing the treatment needs of
patients with special needs." (The same will apply to dental hygiene students).
Patients with special needs has been
defined as: "Those patients whose medical, physical, psychological, or social
situations make it necessary to modify normal dental routines in order to
provide dental treatment for that individual. These individuals include, but are
not limited to, people with developmental disabilities, complex medical
problems, and significant physical limitations."
This was the result of two years of advocacy work, letters and articles,
testifying in front of CODA and submitting reams of data to support the need for
this action. Several of the promoters of this mandate are members of the
Medicine Division of AAMR and the American Academy of Developmental Medicine and
Dentistry (AADMD) and are to be congratulated.
I hope the medical fraternity sees the light and replicates this forward
thinking curriculum addition.
Sincerely,
Rick Rader, MD, FAAMR
Member, Medicine Division, AAMR
Board, AADMD
