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Dean's Message
Kornberg School of Dentistry in 2011: A Patient-Centered Health Care Institution
The Maurice H. Kornberg School of Dentistry at Temple University is the second oldest dental school in continuous existence in the United States. The school has the largest dental clinic in the Philadelphia area providing dental care for underserved population groups. We have a strong record of excellence in clinical dental education with our students and faculty providing care to patients at more than 100,000 visits annually, making the school one of the busiest academic dental clinics in the country. Through partnerships with community-based organizations, the school addresses access to care issues affecting underserved communities in Pennsylvania and serves as the dental home and healthcare safety net for members of the surrounding community. Last year, over 7,000 new patients were screened for admission into the comprehensive care program and over 5,000 patients were treated in the emergency services clinic. We are in the process of increasing the school’s capacity to provide dental care and our students will graduate with advanced clinical skills. The school’s international outreach is expanding. In addition to volunteer dental opportunities for students in Haiti, we are working on developing new programs with other countries.
An aspect of the Edwin and Trudy Weaver Historical Dental Museum in the third floor of the dental school building.
In addition to our clinical strengths, the school has many other things of which we are proud. In 1988, our dental school was one of the first in the country to establish a clinic dedicated to the specialized care required for patients with infectious diseases and other medical complications. In 1997, our oral microbiology testing service laboratory opened as one of only three state-licensed university based clinical oral microbiology reference laboratories in the United States. In 2003, the Edwin and Trudy Weaver Historical Dental Museum was constructed at the school, and houses some of the finest museum quality dental antiquities in the country. More recently, the dental school collaborated with the Fox School of Business to offer a dual-degree program leading to both DMD and MBA degrees, and we are working on an innovative program leading to a Master of Public Health (MPH) along with the DMD degree. In 2009, the school initiated a 12 month intensive post-baccalaureate program to better prepare college graduates to enroll as dental students, and finally, renovations in the Orthodontic clinic kicked off a school-wide effort to make our facilities the most modern in the country.
As the new dean of the Kornberg School of Dentistry, I intend to build on the strengths already existing at the school and engage in a strategic planning process to improve the quality of life for our students, staff, patients, and faculty. We will create a new learning environment for students (our future alumni), with faculty members embarking on an exciting journey on which they will become leaders of change and innovation. Prospective students can look forward to many changes as current students, staff, faculty and alumni work together in a shared vision of maintaining and advancing the clinical education, patient care, service and research missions of the school. We envision a more systematic approach to redesign the clinical operations of the school. Patient care is, and will continue to be the primary focus of our efforts and the backbone for growth and innovation. We will review our clinical operations from the perspectives of the patients, from the moment they enter the lobby and meet the staff and students, until they are finished with their dental care. Students will be trained in team management and collaborative patient treatment, and we will evaluate the outcomes of dental care to ensure that we are providing the best care within an appropriate time frame.
Panoramic of the reception area of the new Graduate Orthodonics clinical facilities in the second floor of the dental school building.
It is incumbent upon our students, staff, faculty and alumni to be involved members of the Kornberg School of Dentistry family. As such, we can provide both the intellectual and financial support that will pave the way for the creation of a new model for dental education - a model that will strengthen our position as leader in the clinical dental education of new members of our noble healthcare profession.
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Amid I. Ismail, BDS, MPH, MBA, DrPH Phone: 215-707-2799 |