January 2012

The Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC) has conferred accreditation upon UBC Dentistry’s Clinical Specialty Graduate Program in Endodontics and Dental Hygiene Degree Program. CDAC is the autonomous body responsible for accrediting dental, dental specialty, dental residency, dental hygiene and dental assisting education programs across Canada.

The graduate endodontics program at UBC was launched in 2008, with preliminary approval for three years—a time allowance for new programs to assemble all the components required to meet accreditation guidelines for eligibility. The dental hygiene program was launched in 2007 with preliminary approval for four years.

After CDAC conducted a thorough analysis of supporting documentation for both programs and paid a site visit to UBC in February 2011, full accreditation was granted for each program in November.

With full support of faculty and staff, program director Dr. Jeff Coil led the process of accreditation for graduate endodontics, while Prof. Bonnie Craig, director of the Dental Hygiene Degree Program, led the process of accreditation for dental hygiene.

Both processes culminated in hefty documents detailing curriculum development, including research and clinical courses; administration structure and staff support levels; infrastructure, such as space allowance and technological equipment; teaching resources, specifically part-time and full-time faculty; and support from the greater endodontics and dental hygiene communities.

Coil notes some key strengths remarked on by the CDAC reviewers: “The commission was impressed by the commitment and generosity of part-time and full-time faculty to endodontics teaching, and they were equally impressed by the support the program enjoys from the local endodontics community, and the British Columbia Society of Endodontics.”

Students in the Dental Hygiene Degree Program train to become dental hygienists while obtaining a Bachelor of Dental Science in Dental Hygiene (BDSc (DH)) degree. “The degree gives a solid foundation for future graduate-level work,” notes Craig, “and its curriculum is designed to train graduates to work in community health settings with other healthcare professionals.” The breadth and depth of the dental hygiene program to prepare a new generation of health care providers was a unique strength of the accreditation application she remarks.

Based on the site visit, Coil adds, the assessors were particularly impressed with the clinic facilities in the Nobel Biocare Oral Health Centre and the Faculty’s current technology for endodontic treatment. Craig points to the numerous small group conference rooms in the John B. Macdonald Building as outstanding educational facilities that made an impact during the site visit.