ORTHODONTIC POSTGRADUATE PROGRAM

A. Overview
This is a full-time program, requiring 36 months in active residence beginning July 1 each year. The program is fully accredited and meets the educational requirements of the American Board of Orthodontics. It is designed to prepare future leaders in the specialty of orthodontics who are well-qualified for academic careers as well as for clinical practice.

The orthodontics program provides a balanced education with a strong emphasis on an excellent clinical foundation, didactics and research. The program combines a foundation in basic sciences with clinical and behavior training relevant to the delivery of orthodontic treatment. Postgraduate students participate in the prevention and correction of malocclusions and facial disproportions to achieve the best functional and esthetic results in growing children as well as in adults. Emphasis is placed on facial morphology and growth and on the function of the neuromuscular system. Instruction is presented through lectures, seminars, demonstrations and conferences and is supplemented and emphasized by clinical treatment of patients.

A certificate in Orthodontics and a MS or PhD degree in Oral Biology are awarded upon satisfactory completion of the postgraduate program. Graduates are educationally eligible for examination by the American Board of Orthodontics and are required to take the written examination at the end of the program.

B. Program Strengths
The postdoctoral orthodontics program at UCSF is a well-established program that provides balanced and diverse education, and has many positive attributes as outlined below.

1. Educational Experiences
Clinical skills are learned in an environment patterned after the modern orthodontic practice. Extensive clinical experience is gained while working as a part of an orthodontic clinical team consisting of a first, second and third year student who are aided by highly skilled registered dental assistants. Each resident is assigned his / her own patients in the first year of the program, most of which are expected to be completed by the end of the third year. Instruction is given in the use of various contemporary fixed, removable and functional appliances. Students are taught the important skills of orthodontic diagnosis, treatment planning, implementation of appropriate treatment objectives and mechanics, finishing and retention.

The program also has a strong emphasis on multidisciplinary treatments. The students have ample opportunities to work closely with oral and maxillofacial surgeons, periodontists, pediatric dentists, oral radiologists, prosthodontists, and TMD specialists and to consult with other dental and medical specialists on the campus. Additionally, students participate in the treatment of patients with craniofacial anomalies and are able to observe the activities of the Center for Craniofacial Anomalies located within the Department of Growth and Development. A strong emphasis is placed on developing skills in evaluating etiology, diagnosis and prognosis of patients with craniofacial anomalies. Students are also provided with professional leave to attend specific outside courses that are considered to be important to their overall education.

The clinical and didactic instruction in orthodontic is provided by our full-and part-time faculty (link to faculty page) many of whom are recognized experts in various aspects of orthodontics and several of whom are Diplomates of the American Board of Orthodontics.

The certificate program is combined with the postgraduate academic programs in Oral Biology leading to an M.S. degree in a three-year period of study. We also have a combined PhD-certificate program that can be selected for those postgraduate students who are interested in pursuing an academic career. There is support available for the PhD portion (3-5 years) from the Division of Oral Biology. MS or PhD degrees are conferred after completion of required academic courses and an original research project.

2. Facilities and Staff
The Division of Orthodontics has a new state-of-the-art clinical facility (link to clinic page) with an open-bay design similar to that found in many private orthodontic offices. All first and third year resident is assigned one chair each while the second years are assigned two chairs each. There is an internet hook-up at each clinic chair, which the students use to access patient images, radiographs and patient education materials. The program also has its own panorex, cephalometric and intraoral digital radiology system on clinic floor. Images from these units can be accessed from any of the data ports in the clinic. The clinic also has a computerized final consultation room and a separate tooth brushing area. A digital imaging center with the latest in computer, scanning and printing equipment, which is used for managing patient images, and measuring from radiographs is available to all students. Almost all of the clinical imaging is now managed digitally. Three-dimensional imaging is now used for all orthodontic initial records. We also have a spacious, self-contained new laboratory with amenities for all orthodontic laboratory work located on the clinic floor.

Several offices, including the billing office and clinic director’s office, that are important to clinic functions, are also located adjacent the clinic. The students also have their own residents room with individual desks assigned to each resident that is located in close proximity to the clinic. This room also contains computers linked up to the internet which the residents utilize for their clinical, didactic and research work. An orthodontic conference room and library is situated next to the residents’ room. UCSF boasts excellent research facilities, with many of the investigators having their individual research laboratories.

Besides our large number of well-qualified faculty, several staff members support the clinic functions. These include dental assistants, an appointment clerk, a billing officer and a treatment coordinator.