“One of the things that I’m really pleased about with these standards is that we’ve got a two-year program in Alaska that has a clinical preceptorship program after. “The other key issue is uniformity across the country,” says Dr.

CODA, established in 1975, is recognized by the US Department of Education as the agency responsible for accrediting dental and dental-related programs. But when you have accreditation standards, that’s saying an official body accredits all dental educational programs and is agreeing that this is a very important program, and it should be held to what we call accreditation standards, so the quality of the education is high.”Īlso, a governing body establishing guidelines provides a national standardization of the profession. “The data on how well they perform and what they’re doing in Alaska and Minnesota is one form of legitimacy. Frank Catalanotto, DMD, a pediatric dentist and professor at the University of Florida. “What the accreditation standards really do is legitimize them,” says Dr. Trending article: The best and worst states to work in a dental practiceīefore the CODA guidelines, it was up to individual states to decide what they would allow of dental therapists – or even if therapists would be endorsed.

And, actually, the incidents of untreated tooth decay among adults is even greater than that for kids, so it’s great that little by little this profession is growing, and we have more providers who can treat the most basic dental needs that people have.” “It’s the number one unmet health need for children. “The reason why it’s so important is that tooth decay is a horrific problem in the US,” says Jane Koppelman, research director for the Children’s Dental Program at The Pew Charitable Trusts in Washington D.C.

They work primarily in settings that serve low-income, uninsured and underserved populations. Dental therapists provide preventive and restorative treatment for both children and adults, and they can also extract primary teeth under the supervision of a dentist. They are mid-level providers, similar to nurse practitioners on a medical team. This allows the profession – currently only active in Alaska and Minnesota, with newcomer Maine in the initial stages – to be more readily adoptable by other states.ĭental therapistsare licensed oral health care professionals who practice as part of a dental team, providing educational, clinical and therapeutic patient services. On August 7, 2015, the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) authorized the establishment of an accreditation process for dental therapy education programs. People who don’t have access to dental professionals – or can’t afford to see one – are going to have better opportunities now, thanks to national guidelines that will introduce a new type of dental professional.

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