About the Program
The Advanced Education Program in Periodontics is a course of study leading to the award of a Certificate in Periodontics. The program provides a comprehensive course of study in clinical and didactic periodontics, satisfying the requirements for eligibility for the American Board of Periodontology.
The program provides the residents with the biological, scientific and clinical background to diagnose and treat all forms of periodontal disease on a rational basis. The resident becomes thoroughly familiar with the periodontal literature and receives broad clinical experiences in examination, prognosis determination, and all accepted modes of periodontal therapy. Residents are encouraged to continue learning experiences after completion of the program by means of the critical review of the literature and experiences in clinical research. Hospital dentistry and a varied patient population are achieved through the Medical College of Georgia Hospital and Clinics and an affiliation with the Veterans Administration Medical Center Outpatient Dental Clinic.
Candidates for admission should possess good academic credentials and should demonstrate a definite interest in periodontics. Additional experience beyond dental school including internships, residencies, private practice, military service or graduate studies will strengthen the applicant’s credentials. A personal site visit and interview is usually required for acceptance into the program.
Admission Requirements
Dentists graduated from accredited United States and Canadian or other international dental schools that possess equivalent educational background and standing are eligible for admission to the Advanced Education Program in Periodontics. All applicants must apply through PASS. All items, with the exception of the photo, should be sent through PASS. Only your photo should come to us directly. The application deadline is September 1, 2009 for the upcoming year (2010). The PASS deadline is August 18th. We will contact top applicants for interviews following the deadline, and you are encouraged to get your application materials in prior to the deadline as the review process of completed applications will begin at that time. Application materials are reviewed and candidates with the highest qualifications are selected for an interview based on the following criteria: dental and pre-professional education transcripts, class standing, National Dental Board Examination results, personal and career goals, experiences beyond predoctoral education, evidence of scholarly activity, and letters of recommendation. Applicants born outside the United States and whose native language is not English must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Required score of the TOEFL is 550 (written test) or 250 (computer test). The Internet-based version of TOEFL (iBT TOEFL) will cover all four language skills: speaking, listening, reading and writing. Applicants must achieve a minimum score of 100, with 26 in the speaking component.
Program Fee, Stipends, Equipment and Benefits
Program Fee: There is no program fee associated with the certificate program in periodontics for dentists who have graduated from accredited United States or Canadian dental schools. The annual program fee for international candidates with degrees from other dental schools is $18,500. If the resident wishes to enroll in the Master of Science in Oral Biology degree program, he must pay tuition for courses taken through the School of Graduate Studies.
Stipends: Stipends are available only for residents who are citizens or permanent residents of the United States and have a DDS/DMD degree from an ADA/CODA accredited dental school. The residents in periodontics share a stipend funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Augusta Medical Center. Associated with this stipend is a clinical rotation of one to two half-days per week through the Outpatient Dental Clinic for the VAMC. The stipend is approximately $5,700-$9,000 per year for each resident. Augusta, Georgia is a beautiful city with a low cost of living. This makes it ideal for residency training from a financial standpoint.
Equipment: Periodontic residents are required to furnish their own digital camera and accessories for intra-oral photography and an implant kit. Photographic equipment costs are approximately $2,000.00 and the implant kit $1,000.00. The clinic has up-to-date equipment for periodontic and dental implant surgical procedures, periodontal endoscopy, monitoring equipment for IV sedation and a CO2 laser. All other supplies and equipment associated with the clinical program are provided by the institution.
Benefits: The School of Dentistry provides malpractice insurance coverage for residents while providing patient care at the Medical College of Georgia. This insurance does not cover any outside dental practice. Periodontic residents are entitled to MCG employee holidays and 10 days of vacation/personal leave per year. Periodontic residents are eligible to participate in the Student Health Care Program at MCG.
The Facilities
The periodontic residents treat patients in the Periodontics Surgery Clinic located in the School of Dentistry and in the Outpatient Dental Clinic of the Augusta VA Medical Center. In the Periodontics Surgery Clinic each resident is assigned an operatory equipped with handpieces and an ultrasonic scaler. The clinic is equipped with state of the art digital periapical and bitewing radiographic capture and has access to panographic and Cone-beam CT Scanning technologies for implant surgery. All radiographic images are captured and stored electronically using MiPACS. Clinical records, scheduling and billing are all managed electronically with axiUm dental management software. Pairs of residents share office space in the clinic, and each office is equipped with a computer that is connected to the institutional network for e-mail, library services and internet access.
Policy for the Advanced Standing Student
The following policy is designed to permit students with specialty training in Periodontics from foreign, or non-accredited institutions to obtain specialty training in Periodontics at the Medical College of Georgia with advanced-standing status. This policy is aligned with Standard 5 of the American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation Standards for Advanced Education in Periodontics.
The advanced-standing student must complete the application for admission to the Advanced Education Program in Periodontics and must comply with established interview and selection criteria following the existing protocol. National Boards (Part 1 and Part 2) are encouraged but not required.
Didactic Training:
The advanced-standing student’s previous periodontal-specialty-level course work and grades will be assessed with the aid of appropriate agencies to assure a similar curriculum and an acceptable level of performance. Course deficiencies will be addressed by the student’s successful completion of appropriate courses and/or by examination. The advanced-standing student must take any required courses in sequence with the established program curriculum during the credentialing process.
The advanced-standing student must take and pass the American Academy of Periodontology In-Service Examination with an overall percentile ranking (all residents-all years of training) score of 70%.
Clinical Training:
The advanced-standing student will be assigned a variety of patients/procedures and must demonstrate the appropriate levels of skill in periodontal diagnosis and treatment planning, and in the performance of clinical procedures pertinent to the specialty of periodontics. The advanced-standing student’s clinical skills will be evaluated by periodontics faculty by means of clinical supervision and in case presentation format.
Clinical rotations will be modified according to availability, needs and establishment of competency and proficiency. Teaching expectations will be modified according to availability and needs.
The advanced-standing student must perform clinical procedures pertinent to the specialty of periodontics at levels of skill described in the accreditation standards (i.e. exposed, competent and proficient).
The advanced-standing student must prepare fully documented case presentations on patients that have been treated in the MCG Periodontics Clinic. These cases must be treated through completion of periodontal therapy.
The advanced-standing student must pass a mock board examination.
Research Training:
The advanced-standing student must conduct a research project and prepare a publishable manuscript for submission to an acceptable, peer-reviewed, professional journal.
The certificate for Advanced Education in Periodontics will be awarded following satisfactory completion of items 1 through 6. The length of training will be determined by the level of knowledge and skill demonstrated by the advanced-standing student, with a minimum expectation of 12 months of full-time effort.
Students with dental degrees from foreign institutions, not accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association will be assessed an annual Program Fee of $18,500 to cover the educational costs of the program.
The Curriculum
The Periodontic Postdoctoral Program curriculum has three components: (1) Periodontics Specialty Courses, (2) Basic Science Core Courses (Oral Biology courses), and (3) Clinical Core Courses. The following is a brief description of the Periodontics Specialty Course Offerings:
Periodontal Literature Review (210 hrs): A seminar on relevant readings in the periodontal literature. Articles are assigned on specific subjects and critically discussed. The etiology of periodontal disease, treatment of periodontal disease, and dental implantology are general topics that are presented on alternate years.
Periodontal Specialty Clinic (20 hrs/wk - 3 yrs): Patients with different types and severity of periodontal disease are treated using current modalities. Postdoctoral residents receive experiences with all accepted methods of periodontal treatment and with dental implant therapy.
Therapy Seminar I (72 hrs): This is an orientation course designed to prepare new residents for clinical activities. It includes seminar discussions and laboratory experiences of common therapeutic techniques used in advanced periodontal therapy, including periodontal data collection, intraoral photography, diagnosis and treatment planning, behavior modification, mucogingival surgery, flaps, pedicle and free gingival grafts.
Periodontal Surgery Seminar (100 hrs): Residents present intraoral photographic slides which were obtained during periodontal surgery for critical evaluation and discussion of the objectives of the procedure employed, the anticipated results, and alternative methods of treatment.
Periodontal Journal Club (80 hrs): This is a literature seminar designed to acquaint residents with the current periodontal literature. Residents review and discuss articles from current Journals of Periodontology and Clinical Periodontology.
Occlusion (27 hrs): The literature on the subject of occlusion is reviewed and discussed as it relates to the etiology and treatment of periodontal disease. Topics, such as neurophysiology of occlusion, parafunction, trauma from occlusion, and secondary traumatism are included.
Periodontal Research Project: Residents must be involved in a research project and prepare a research manuscript for publication.
Undergraduate Teaching (24 hours): Residents have responsibility for teaching a course in periodontics to dental hygiene students and assist in clinical instruction for predoctoral students.
Interdisciplinary Seminars (40 hrs): Seminars focusing on the interrelation of periodontics with other specialties, such as endodontics, orthodontics, pediatric dentistry, and prosthodontics.
Periodontal Practice Management (10 hrs): Seminar on procedures that are used in a practice limited to periodontics. Topics include business systems, referrals, office space, management and dental assistant utilization.
Periodontal Pathology (10 hrs): Histologic alterations of the periodontal tissue associated with various forms of periodontal pathology are studied with the aid of the microscope. These changes are correlated with clinical signs and symptoms.
Periodontal Case Presentations (200 hrs): Residents document and present case presentations in a format simulating the oral examination of the American Board of Periodontology.
Treatment Planning Seminars (132 hrs): Residents in periodontics and prosthodontics present the clinical database and diagnosis of patients treated in their specialty clinics. Discussions are held on the etiology, prognosis and treatment plans for these patients.
The Core Curriculum
Basic Science (Oral Biology) and Clinical Core Courses, listed below are taken along with residents from other specialty programs. In addition to these courses residents also participate in an anesthesia rotation through the operating room of the MCG Hospital.
Oral Biology Courses:
- Topics in Oral Biology I: Hard Tissue Biology, TMJ Disorders, Regeneration/Repair
- Topics in Oral Biology II: Orofacial Infections, Bleeding Disorders
- Topics in Oral Biology III: Pain & Anxiety, Dental Management of the Medically Compromised Patient, Salivary Glands
- Topics in Oral Biology IV: Molecular Pathology, Orofacial Anomalies
- Seminar in Oral Biology
- Research
Clinical Core Courses:
- Physical Diagnosis
- Dental Implantology
- Dental Radiology
- Orthodontics
- Research Design & Statistics
- CPR/BCLS
