University of Western Ontario School of Dentistry

One of the largest projects that has taken the energy of the School over the past 24 months has been the SchoolÇƒÙs Accreditation by the Canadian Dental Association. The Accreditation process has now been completed. The School continues to successfully ensure that our students are provided with a rigorous, challenging program that satisfies all the competency requirements of the national regulatory body.
The administration of the School continues to evolve. The Divisions of Prosthodontics, Operative Dentistry and Endodontics have merged into the Division of Restorative Dentistry, under the leadership of Dr. William Gray. Dr. Richard Bohay has taken on the role of Assistant Director ÇƒÏ Academic Affairs. Dr. El-Kassem continues in his role as Director of Clinic, working diligently to assist faculty and students with patient management.
Another key area of interest in the school is the completion of the Endodontic Clinic. This state of the art facility includes microscopic and digital radiography equipment. The School has enjoyed the benefit of this new addition for over a year. Activity within our new Multi-Functional Clinic continues to gain momentum, aided in large part by the advent of up-to-the-minute closed circuit video technology. This new technology allows for the development of educational materials and provides live, Çƒ?hands-onÇƒ? Continuing Dental Education opportunities.
Phase III of our construction project, which will refit the main clinic, has started. Operational and financial implications currently restrict us to installing twelve to fourteen new units this Summer. Restricting the construction to this level will allow us to operate with a minimum of disruption in the function of the Main Clinic. The School will have time to contact our Alumni and Friends for their generous support for the ongoing project.
A very successful Faculty Development workshop was held for our Faculty members in June 2004. This session was extremely well received, particularly by our young Faculty. The School is embarking on a comprehensive curriculum review and strategic plan for the next five years. A planning retreat took place in August 2004, and another one in December 2004. The School is working with an external consultant to facilitate this process.
Our Skeletal Biology Group continues to enhance its international reputation for excellence and establishes Western's School of Dentistry as a leading centre in musculoskeletal and dental research in Canada. Canada's principal funding agency for health research, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) recently announced renewal of the School of Dentistry's CIHR Group in Skeletal Development and Remodeling ($1.3 million over 5 years). The current recruitment of 2 new Faculty in the areas of Tissue Engineering and Skeletal Biology will further strengthen the research capabilities of the School.
The School of Dentistry continues to attract very high quality applicants and our international program is fully subscribed this year. Our undergraduate students continue to be active in both the School and the community. The 4th Annual Mouthguard Clinic was organized by the students for October 2004. Over 35 student volunteers prepared mouthguards for approximately 100 patients. The proceeds of this event go to the Dental Care Fund, to provide dental care to special needs patients.
School of Dentistry, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry
The University of Western Ontario
1151 Richmond Street
Dental Sciences Building, Room 1003
London ON N6A 5C1
Phone: (519) 661-3330