A new dental direction for the University

A new dental care facility is to open at the University in April 2010. The education and clinical facility will train dental professionals of the future and provide on-site dental care to the public.

Training will be provided by the University’s School of Health & Social Care for dental therapists and dental nurses in accredited programmes ranging from certificate to degree level. It is anticipated there will be collaboration with Newcastle University’s Dental School and the Northern Postgraduate Deanery. The facility will also have its own dentist who will treat local patients.

Professor Paul Keane, Dean of the School of Health & Social Care, said: ‘This is an excellent development as the University continues to endorse its commitment to meeting the needs of employers and service users. When the service is fully operational it can be accessed by members of the public as patients and endorses the University’s commitment to enhancing community well-being.

‘We’re already working very closely with dental advisers in the area with regard to the specific requirements of this new facility. We’ve also visited the University of Portsmouth to see how they operate a similar facility.’

Professor Cliff Allan, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development) at the University said: ‘I am delighted that we have been able to secure this prestigious and extremely important contract. It is yet another example of the University working imaginatively with employers and partner institutions to deliver high quality provision and we are very much looking forward to launching the new facility in two years time.’

Malcolm Smith, one of the Dental Advisers to the Tees PCTs said: ‘We have worked for considerable length of time to develop a facility for dental training in Teesside and these plans are now coming to fruition. This facility will mean that we will be able to develop a multi-professional dental team to meet the needs of patients for many years to come.’

The facility will be based in new purpose built-accommodation on the University’s campus. Training programmes of different lengths will start in April 2010. Initially there will be ten students on each of the courses.

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