Key Takeaways:
- In order to make way for students in a new dental therapy programme, the University of Saskatchewan’s Prince Albert Campus Dental Clinic has been temporarily closed to patients.
The Prince Albert Campus Dental Clinic at the University of Saskatchewan has been temporarily closed to patients as renovations are made to make room for students in a new dental therapy program.
“We are quite happy. Acting Dean of the College of Dentistry, Dr. Walter Siqueira, described the two-year curriculum as extremely distinctively developed. “This program was created to assist the disadvantaged group and create new employment prospects.”
The first and only dental therapy degree program in Canada will debut in the fall of 2023 with the introduction of the Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Dental Therapy program.
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The university intends to offer dental therapy programs at three satellite campuses:
- The Sask Polytech site in Regina
- The Northlands College campus in La Ronge
- The University of Saskatchewan campus in Prince Albert
There will be 21 students accepted into the program each year, seven at each school location. It will concentrate on enlisting Native American pupils. Students will be able to learn about where they live, thanks to the placement of the campuses.
Siqueira believes the oral therapy program’s enrollment period will start in March 2023.
Simply put, we don’t want to graduate dentists. We want to graduate dental therapists and assistants, both of whom play crucial roles on the dental team, said Siqueira.
14 students will be able to work at the Prince Albert Campus Dental Clinic after the renovations are finished, alongside senior dental students and dental residents from the University of Saskatchewan College of Dentistry, all under the direction of qualified dentists.
Students who decide to drop out of the program early have other possibilities, according to Siqueira.
A pupil will be given a dental aid certificate after completing six months. And after a year, they will be awarded a certificate as a dental assistant.
“If the student chooses not to complete the program for any reason, they can still work.”
On June 8, 2022, the federal government gave the University of Saskatchewan $2.1 million to start the dental therapy program.
The First Nations and Inuit Health Branch of Indigenous Services Canada provided the financing.
Source: CTV News
