Training for Dental Implants Krishnakant Bhatia Specialist in Prosthodontics BDS, MFDS RCPS (glas), MClinDent (Prosthodontics), MRS RCS (Edin) Senior Clinical Researcher and Honorary Specialist in Prosthodontics, Edinburgh Postgraduate Dental Institute Edinburgh Periodontics Specialist Referral Practice
The following hand out is a brief summary of the presentation given for the British Medical and Dental Careers Fair 2012 Relevant links have been placed to help you read further on training for dental implants
Training To Place And Restore Dental Implants
CPD? Certificate? Diploma? Masters? PhD/MPhil (further research)? Specialisation? (there is no specialist list in dental implantology)
Surgical skills Raising a flap Hard and soft tissue surgery Hard and soft tissue grafts Managing surgical failures Managing implant failures Managing emergencies and complaints much, much more! Prerequisite skills? Do you have all these skills? Restorative skills Treatment planning Occlusal management Basic restorative management Periodontal and Endodontic management Prosthodontic management Management of multiple missing teeth/units Alternative options for replacing missing teeth (Bridgework, RBB, Dentures etc.) Patient management skills (communication, consent, treatment planning etc.) Management of biomechanical and mechanical failures much, much more! Can you develop them? HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF YOUR OWN ABILITIES AND SKILLS!!!
How much training in dental implants is enough? What does the GDC say?
Dental professionals have an ethical responsibility to limit their scope of practice to what they are trained and competent to do. Any dental professional who carries out work for which they are not trained and competent puts their registration at risk. Link: General Dental Council My opinion technology in dental implants is advancing rapidly, your training should give you the skills to continue your personal development beyond the course taken itself lifelong learning through critical reading of the literature!
The GDC s guidance on the required learning outcomes of undergraduate education for dentists The First Five Years, states that dental students should be familiar with dental implants as an option in replacing missing teeth. A UK-qualified dentist would not be expected to be competent to practise implant dentistry without undertaking structured postgraduate training and assessment of competence. Link: link here
Training Standards in Implant Dentistry Link - click here FGDP (Faculty of General Dental Practitioners) Royal College of Surgeons of England Simple Complex
Assessment of Competence Independent body examinations have been formed to assess a dentists knowledge and competence on dental implantology Example bodies: Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh link
What courses are there and what are their differences? Consider developing all round skills before embarking on training in dental implants Weekend/Week CPD course Private courses Certificate Diploma Masters PhD/MPhil Specialisation (there is NO specialist list in dental implantology)
My opinion While a career in dental implants is very challenging and demanding, it can be very satisfying Dental implants play a big role in almost all fields of dentistry (the need for multi-disciplinary work is important) Do consider developing your all round ability prior to embarking on training within dental implantology You do not need to be a specialist to place and restore dental implants
Courses Certificate, Diploma or Masters courses are ideal for general dental practitioners Almost all courses for dental implantology are offered on a part-time or visiting basis to help dentists work while they learn (some will be full-time, think about the financial requirements) You will need to be mentored by a well experienced clinician to help take the steps from knowledge to clinical ability Masters and especially Doctorates will involve a large research component (academic development) and may take a number of years to complete (full time or part time) Always make sure you read course entry requirements, what you will be taught, assessment criteria and how much work is involved (too often dentists underestimate the amount of work that is required) Consider an independent body examination to further verify your knowledge and ability
Speak to (ideally all of them) Private general dental practitioners who place and restore dental implants Private specialists who work with dental implants Hospital specialists Association of Dental Implantology UK General Dental Council Implants representatives
Dentists who wok with dental implants are all always very keen to help and give advice, try speaking to a number of different clinicians as they will have all followed a different training pathway
Edinburgh Postgraduate Dental Institute www.dentistry.ed.ac.uk Krishnakant Bhatia krishb@live.co.uk