New dentists sought for UCSD dental fellowship

By | October 30, 2014

New dentists with a passion for working with the underserved and is interested in education are encouraged to apply for a one-year stipend dental fellowship with the University of California, San Diego.

Those eligible are new dentists who are General Practice Residency (GPR) or Advance Education in General Dentistry (AEGD) graduates with a California license or is eligible for a California license.

Spanish language skills are a plus, but not required; experience in teaching or working with the underserved is also a plus.  The fellow will work in UCSD’s free dental clinics and learn first-hand about delivering high quality preventive and restorative dental care with the underserved.  This will be a full-time commitment.

UCSD’s free dental clinics have been in existence since 2002. The UCSD-Run Free Dental Clinic Project provides comprehensive dental services to underserved, unemployed, uninsured and the homeless. The clinic functions as part of a transdisciplinary model in partnership with the UCSD School of Medicine and offers medical, dental, pharmacy, social work and law. The patient population is mixed, which includes children, elderly, middle-aged, and some with special needs.

To date, the Free Dental Clinic Project has provided over 5.7 million dollars of free dental care.  Dental services include exams, x-rays, hygiene, restorative care, root canals, crowns, orthodontia, periodontics, dentures, pedodontics and more.

Based on longstanding community partnerships, the dental clinics are located at four sites including the First Lutheran Church in Downtown San Diego, the Pacific Beach United Methodist Church, Baker Elementary School, and Lemon Grove Academy; both schools serve low-income underserved students and their families. The newest clinic is at Lemon Grove Academy, which is a public pre-school through eighth grade where we also provide a one-week elective for 7th and 8th graders about oral health and staying in school, going to college and considering careers in health care, especially dentistry.

Fellows will also participate in a 3-week faculty development course in underserved dentistry and complete a project related to an area of focus. The application will be a multi-step process.  As a first step, send a letter of interest and their CV to dsilverstein22@cox.net and cbloomwhitener@ucsd.edu. UCSD hopes to fill this position and start the fellow in the clinics July 1 or as soon as feasible. For more information about our programs, visit http://fdc-pds.ucsd.edu/.  For any further information, contact Dr. Donna Kritz-Silverstein at 619.838.0822.

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