U of M, MDA keep access in mind in creating dental therapist educational program

St. Paul, Minn.鈥擳he Minnesota Dental Association has done its due diligence and given very thorough consideration to the dental therapy provider, said Dr. Jamie Sledd, MDA immediate past president.

“Dental therapists have a place on the team of dental professionals and can help improve access to care,” she said.

The intent to create a new educational program for dental therapists is the result of careful study and discussions among the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry, faculty, staff and students, and the MDA.

“We have approached this with the utmost care because we realize that the School of Dentistry is the first to develop this program,” said Dr. Patrick M. Lloyd, dean of the U of M School of Dentistry. “If we’re going to do this, we want to be sure to do it right.”

The U of M School of Dentistry led a fact-finding mission in 2008 to learn about dental therapists in Canada, England and New Zealand. They set out to gain knowledge of the curriculum and faculty; tour facilities; meet dentists, dental therapists and dental therapy students; and develop professional partnerships.

Dr. Lloyd said the trips convinced him “that dental therapists, working in a dentist-supervised oral health care delivery system, can appreciably help improve access to care,” he wrote in Northwest Dentistry, the Journal of the MDA.

“Not, as it turns out, by increasing the number of clinics operating in a community, but by increasing the capacity of an already-established network of providers throughout the state to care for greater numbers of patients and to offer these services at a reduced cost,” wrote Dr. Lloyd. “I came to recognize that the most significant advantage a dental school-based educational program has is its ability to train to a single standard of care, thus ensuring public trust and the respect of the profession.”

The dental school is the only educational institution in the state prepared to develop curriculum to train a dental team member to perform surgical and restorative procedures, said Dr. Sledd.

“Having the opportunity to see firsthand how dental therapists work with a dentist on-site as they do in England showed me how this idea could work,” said Dr. Sledd. “On one of the tours, a dental therapist encountered a complication during a restoration鈥攑ulpal exposure鈥攁nd the supervising dentist was right there to make a new diagnosis and treatment plan so they could continue on with treatment.”

“We believe that a college degree is important,” said Dr. Lloyd. “There is a level of care to be provided by someone with a college degree that builds trust and confidence in the eyes of the public.”

In addition to the baccalaureate degree, U of M is also offering a master’s of dental therapy program. Educating dental therapy providers alongside dental students and other allied dental providers reinforces the team concept, said Dr. Lloyd. “If we can educate them together, they can learn together and they can practice together.”

Dr. Lloyd will provide an update on the dental therapy program at the ADA Board of Trustees’ meeting next month.