Programs : Predoctoral Program

Mentorship Program

The Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Mentorship Program is designed to provide UCSF dental students interested in the discipline of oral and maxillofacial surgery with an opportunity to better understand and appreciate the complete range of activities encompassed in this discipline. The mentors are interested faculty currently teaching in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery who volunteered their time to work with interested students. Some of the activities that mentees will be involved in include making grand rounds visiting operating rooms participation in laboratory projects library reading including the history and future directions of OMFS participation in discussion groups participation in the Journal Club and CPC (Oral Pathology and OMFS) visiting private OMFS offices, specialty clinics or laboratories.

Students who are interested in knowing more about oral and maxillofacial surgery or are planning for a career in this specialty are strongly encouraged to get involved. The OMFS Mentorship program offers students a unique opportunity to become exposed to what it really means to be and oral and maxillofacial surgeon while increasing their awareness and familiarity with the field of oral and maxillofacial surgery. Orientation for this program normally takes place in the Fall semester during a reception held hosting interested dental students. For more information, Contact the department office at 476-8226 or drop by the office at C-522.

Summer Research

The department continues to supervise students undertaking summer research fellowships between the first and second year sponsored by the NIH training grant. The Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery encourages student research and will attempt to mentor UCSF dental students in research projects wherever possible. The department is happy to support students who wish to carry out longitudinal research over a period of a year or longer though we have found that many students underestimate the demands of the predoctoral dental program and find that they have to abandon longitudinal research in order to keep up with their class studies. Therefore, before supporting a student with a longitudinal research program, we need to be assured of their ability to keep up in class.

We are normally able to actively sponsor two or three students for summer research projects during the twelve-week vacation between the first and second year. This is often an ideal time to carry out research and support monies are often available. Freshmen students interested in these summer research fellowships should contact the department at the beginning of the calendar year.

Didactic Courses

The Faculty of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery has been influential and active in the development and implementation of the 2004-2005 new curriculum in the School of Dentistry.  Dr Richard Smith has represented the Department on the School of Dentistry ’s Committees engaged in this activity: Academy of Dental Educators, Dental Science Stream Committee, Biomedical Science Stream Committee, Patient Centered Care Stream Committee, Technology Subcommittee, Educational Policy Committee, and the Clinical Sciences Coordinating Committee.

The concept of the new curriculum is to organize material in to 5 thematic streams that emphasize and reinforce the integration of basic sciences and clinical sciences in dental education.  The 5 thematic streams are as follows:

1. The Biomedical Sciences Stream
2. The Dental Sciences Stream
3. The Scientific Methods in Clinical Dentistry Stream
4. The Art of Restorative Dentistry Stream
5. The Patient Centered Care Stream.

The Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery participates in teaching activities in the:

1. Biomedical Stream
2. Dental Sciences Stream 
3. Patient Centered Care Stream

The OMFS section in Dental Sciences 127 (Fall 2nd year) has two components. The first component teaches the many factors involved in the safe and effective use of local anesthesia in dentistry. The neurophysiology, the pharmacology, of local anesthetics and vasoconstrictors and the clinical action of specific agents are presented. The specific armamentarium and the techniques of regional anesthesia in dentistry as well as the local and systemic complications are described. This course supplements the laboratory and clinical teaching in PCC 129.

 

The second component of this course presents fundamental topics in oro-facial pain classification and differential diagnosis.  Case presentations are used to illustrate clinical aspects.  The OMFS section is presented by the OMFS faculty.  Dr Smith is the Section and Course Director.

 

The OMFS section in Dental Sciences 128.01 (Winter 2^nd year) presents various topics related to neuromuscular function.  The masticatory system, dynamic movements of the jaw, condyle,and cervical vertebrae,  imaging, the craniomandibular apparatus, TMD, and occlusal dysfunction are discussed in this course.  The OMFS Section is presented by Dr McNeill and Patricia Rudd.

 

The OMFS section in Dental Sciences 128.02 (Spring 2^nd year) presents topics on mounted casts/jaw tracking, articular and masticatory muscle disorders, and case-based student presentations.  The OMFS section is presented by Dr McNeill and Patricia Rudd.

1. OMFS 120. This didactic course teaches the many factors involved in the safe and effective use of local anesthesia in dentistry. It supplements the laboratory and clinical teaching in other courses. The neurophysiology, the pharmacology of local anesthetics and vasoconstrictors and the clinical action of specific agents are presented.
2. OMFS 130.01. The topics covered in this course are procedures within the scope of oral surgery for the general practitioner. These subjects provide a didactic overview of pertinent areas and allow for specific behavioral objectives in the clinical setting. This year, three hours of didactic lectures on physical evaluation and diagnosis replaced other material presented elsewhere in the curriculum.
3. OMFS 130.02. This course presents basic concepts and techniques in pain and anxiety control with major emphasis on the use of analgesics, sedatives and anxiolytic agents. An introduction to outpatient general anesthesia is presented from the perspective of OMFS office and Surgery Center settings is presented.
4. OMFS 130.03. This is a didactic course covering advances in the field of pain and pain management. There is a multidisciplinary approach covering a variety of topics such as classification of orofacial pains, diagnostic modalities, surgical, nonsurgical and analgesic management of patients in pain, with headaches and facial neuralgias. Management of peripheral nerve injuries and the chemically dependent dental patient are also presented.
5. OMFS 131. This course presents procedural and didactic information with which the general dentist should be familiar: includes tooth replantation and transplantation, orthognathic, implant and preprosthetic surgery, fractures of the jaws and facial skeleton, odontogenic infections and osteomyelitis and a lecture on cosmetic facial surgery was added to supplement the new clinical program in this area. This year, a lecture on wound healing was given by Dr. Charles Bertolami.
6. OMFS 132. This course presents the common medical emergencies encountered in dental practice. A case-based approach is used with illustrated case scenarios. The student also becomes re-certified in CPR during this course.

Elective Courses

There are five elective courses in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery designed for predoctoral students.

1. OMFS 189.04. This is a full-time/ 1 month elective in clinical OMFS. The student rotates on the OMFS Service at UCSF and SFGH and observes the full scope of OMFS practice in the clinic and hospital settings. They also obtain additional training in dentoalveolar surgery and pain and anxiety control modalities.
2. IDS 182. This is an elective 1 hour, weekly, multidisciplinary Conference with topics related to Dental Implantology.
3. IDS 187. This is an elective in Implantology where the student participates in the surgical and prosthodontic aspects of implant treatment.
4. OMFS 198. This is a supervised study course for predoctoral students. Students are involved in a a research project mentored by an OMFS faculty member. The students are encouraged to write a paper, present an abstract, poster, or table clinic at a professional meeting.
5. OMFS 189. This is an Interdisciplinary Studies predoctoral course for medical students who are interested in a clinical experience in dentistry. The rotations range from 1-4 weeks. In the academic year 1997-1998, over 6 medical students participated in this elective.

There is one major required predoctoral clinical course in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

1. OMFS 109. This is a course that is given to third and fourth year dental students. Third year students spend approximately 2 weeks in the Clinic at UCSF and learn the fundamentals of outpatient oral surgery care. In the fourth year, students spend 2 weeks at UCSF and 2 weeks at SFGH participating in the clinics, hospital and teaching conferences. Second years students have a brief orientation in the OMFS Clinic in preparation for their clinical rotations.

There is a student instruction room in the D-1201. Plans for accreditation and clinic remodeling and upgrade to an accredited free-standing surgery center are well under way. This will give the students direct observation of surgical and anesthesia standards.