Four inspired first- and second-year dental students took it upon themselves to clear the air regarding dental licensure issues. The young quartet assembled an impressive group of dentistry leaders for a dental licensure panel discussion at the Davidson Conference Center the evening of April 25. The panel included Dean Harold Slavkin; Gene Sekiguchi, past-president of the American Dental Association and associate dean for international, professional and legislative affairs; Dennis Hobby, president of the California Dental Association; Peter Dubois, executive director of the California Dental Association; Robert Hedrick, executive officer of the Dental Board of California; and William Woods, president-elect of the Western Regional Examining Board. USCSD faculty member Timothy Saunders moderated the panel. |
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Speaking to an audience comprised of students and faculty from the three Southern California dental schools, the panelists offered their opinions regarding the state of dental licensure and speculated upon its future. "We live in a world that is constantly evolving, and the licensure of our profession must be constantly revised and modified to adapt to change," said Slavkin. Among the many licensure alternatives discussed were portfolio-based examinations, curriculum integrated examinations, and the addition of a fifth-year of dental school in lieu of examination. While consensus for such a contentious issue is hard to come by, DuBois said that students must "get involved" if they want to improve their profession. "We are the stewards of our profession," added Hobby. Their sentiments were echoed by Sunjay Lad, a USC first-year doctoral dental student and event organizer. "As the future of the dental profession, we as students must be knowledgeable of the issues in dental licensure so that we may work with leaders in organized dentistry and the dental boards to develop a process of examination that improves upon the current process while still ensuring clinical competency as well as protection of the public." In addition to Lad, event organizers included USC freshmen Anahita Taraporewalla and Corban Stettler, and sophomore Dezireh Sevanesian. Related Links: |