About the Program
The General Practice Residency program at Georgia Health Sciences University’s College of Dental Medicine is a one-year educational program leading to a certificate. The program is designed to provide clinical, didactic, and hospital experience at the postdoctoral level. The instruction and experience provided are intended to prepare residents to meet the oral health needs of a broad range of patients.
This General Practice Residency program is designed to provide training beyond the level of pre-doctoral education in oral healthcare, using applied basic and behavioral sciences. Education in this program is based on the concept that oral health is an integral and interactive part of total health. This program is designed to expand the scope and depth of the graduates’ knowledge and skills to enable them to provide comprehensive oral healthcare to a wide range of population groups.
The goals of this program include preparation of the graduate to:
- Act as primary care provider for individuals and groups of patients. This includes: providing emergency and multidisciplinary comprehensive oral healthcare; providing patient focused care that is coordinated by the general practitioner; directing health promotion and disease prevention activities, and using advanced dental treatment modalities.
- Plan and provide multidisciplinary oral healthcare for a wide variety of patients, including patients with special needs.
- Manage the delivery of oral healthcare by applying concepts of patient and practice management and quality improvement that are responsive to a dynamic healthcare environment.
- Function effectively within the hospital and other healthcare environments.
- Function effectively within interdisciplinary healthcare teams.
- Apply scientific principles to learning and oral healthcare. This includes using critical thinking, evidence or outcomes-based clinical decision-making and technology-based information retrieval systems.
- Utilize the values of professional ethics, lifelong learning, patient centered care, adaptability, and acceptance of cultural diversity in professional practice.
- Understand the oral health needs of communities and engage in community services.
Admission Requirements
Following submission of a completed application and the required supporting materials, candidates’ files are reviewed by the Resident Selection Committee. This committee consists of the Program Director and at least two other faculty members who provide clinical support for the GPR. Only graduates of a dental school which is accredited by the American Dental Association are considered. The following guidelines are used to select those individuals to be invited for an interview.
- Applicants should rank in the top half of their dental school class.
- Applicants should have a GPA of 3.0 or higher in dental school.
- Applicants should have passed the National Boards.
- Letters of recommendation should be strongly supportive of the individual’s scholastic potential, clinical abilities, and personal characteristics.
- An applicant who does not meet the first three guidelines may be considered if their academic record reflects a notable, consistent improvement, and they are supported by exceptional letters of recommendation.
Candidates who are ultimately considered for the GPR are required to participate in a personal interview. Following the interview process, members of the GPR Resident Selection Committee independently rank the applicants. Should there be gross discrepancies in the rankings, the committee further discusses the applicants. The rankings and deliberations provide the basis for a consensus opinion of the committee.
The Program Director then submits a rank order list to the National Matching Service. The GPR of Georgia Health Sciences University strictly adheres to the requirements of the National Matching Service and all positions are offered only through the National Matching Service.
Selection and Admissions Policies
Candidates who are ultimately considered for the GPR are required to participate in a personal interview. Following the interview process, members of the GPR Resident Selection Committee independently rank the applicants. Should there be gross discrepancies in the rankings, the committee further discusses the applicants. The rankings and deliberations provide the basis for a consensus opinion of the committee. The Program Director then submits a rank order list to the National Matching Service. The GPR of the Georgia Health Sciences University strictly adheres to the requirements of the National Matching Service and all positions are offered only through the National Matching Service.
Tuition, Stipends, Equipment and Benefits
Tuition: There is no tuition associated with the Certificate Program in general practice. If the resident is enrolled in the Master of Science in Oral Biology degree program, he/she must pay tuition for courses taken through the College of Graduate Studies.
Stipends: Last year the general practice residents received an annual stipend of approximately $39,000. This stipend is provided by MCGHealth System Medical Center, and is subject to change each year based on availability of funds. Augusta, Georgia is a beautiful city with a low cost of living. This makes it ideal for residency training from a financial standpoint.
Equipment: All supplies and equipment associated with the clinical program are provided by the institution. Implant surgical kits are given to each resident by the manufacturer.
Benefits: The College of Dental Medicine provides malpractice insurance coverage for residents while providing patient care at Georgia Health Sciences University’s College of Dental Medicine. This insurance does not cover any outside dental practice. Residents are eligible for healthcare insurance if they pay a monthly co-premium. General practice residents are entitled to GHSU employee holidays, though assignments for emergency coverage must be maintained. Residents are entitled to 10 days vacation/personal leave. Residents are eligible for other GHSU benefits if they so elect.
The Facilities
Beginning in July 2011, the General Practice Residents will treat patients in the GPR clinic located in the brand new state-of-the-art College of Dental Medicine. The General Practice Program has its residents’ offices, clinics dedicated to the program, and laboratory facilities on site. Clinical training also occurs in the MCGHealth System hospital and clinics (MCGHI). MCGHI is a tertiary care hospital that serves the needs of patients throughout the state. MCGHI has an inpatient operating room and a modern Ambulatory Procedure Center for general anesthesia cases. The Emergency Department in the hospital has a fully equipped treatment room for dental procedures. Five full time dental assistants are assigned to assist the residents in the clinic.
The Curriculum
The General Practice Residency Program includes didactic training and advanced clinical experience in diagnostic sciences, endodontics, implant dentistry, oral surgery, pediatric dentistry, periodontics, preventive dentistry, prosthodontics (fixed and removable), restorative dentistry and special needs dentistry. The majority of the residents’ time is devoted to advanced clinical training in ambulatory care settings. Patient care is also provided under general anesthesia in the Operating Room and Ambulatory Procedure Center. Additional hospital experience is gained through rotations in Anesthesia, Emergency Medicine, Oral Surgery, Pediatric Dentistry and by participation in rounds and consultative services with various medical disciplines. Major emphasis is given to training related to the care of medically compromised patients.
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