A dentist — if you can forget the dreaded visits and think of the profession — is a person with a much sought-after job. Quite a lot of students are opting to be dentists and what could be better if they could qualify to become one in the United Arab Emirates?
History of dentistry
Dentistry as a field of study is less than 200 years old. French dentist Pierre Fauchard is known as the founder of modern dentistry. With his publication of The Surgeon Dentist in 1728 dentistry was established as a separate branch of medicine.
Organised dentistry began in 1840 with the founding of the first dental school, the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery in Baltimore, United States, and the establishment of the American Society of Dental Surgery.
Though the number of dentists is increasing in the Middle East Region, reports indicate that there is a shortage of trained dentists to meet the demands of the entire population. The World Health Organisation recommends that ideally for every 2,000 people there should be one practising dentist available in the community.
Here we are not anywhere near meeting that condition. But governments and private institutions are setting up dentistry departments in universities to address this shortage and have qualified dentists practising in the region.
Dental studies
According to Dr S. Ramananda Prabhu, Dean of the RAK College of Dental Sciences (RAK-CODS), RAK Medical and Health Sciences University (RAK MHSU) in Ras Al Khaimah, the majority of students who enter dentistry place it on their application forms as their preferred choice, corroborating the fact that the days are gone when dentistry was second choice after medicine and surgery.
Most expatriates, especially Indians prefer their offspring to pursue higher education near them. And universities offering dentistry including RAK-CODS have succeeded in attracting high calibre students to their undergraduate programmes. "I would certainly say that dentistry as a profession and the study of dental science in the Gulf region and in the UAE are highly popular," says Dr Prabhu.
Getting into a dental degree programme
The universities including RAK-CODS offering dental programmes stipulate almost similar requirements for students who want to get into the programmes. Admission is usually strictly on merit only.
In the UAE National General Secondary School Examination (NGSSE) or its equivalent, the student should have achieved an aggregate score of 80 per cent in Physics, Chemistry and Biology with a minimum of 70 per cent in Physics, Chemistry and Biology individually.
Proficiency of English Language Equivalent to a TOEFL Score of 500 in paper based, or 173 in computer based or its equivalent in standardised tests such as IELTS of 5.0
Career prospects
Graduates can practise dentistry as a profession, can pursue postgraduate qualification in several dental specialties such as Endodontics, Periodontics, Prosthodontics, Operative Dentistry, Paedatric Dentistry or Paedodontics, Orthodontics, Oral Maxillo-facial Surgery, Oral Radiology and Oral Medicine, Occlusion, etc. and be a specialist dental practitioner.
They can also become lecturers in dental or medical institutions, join research groups that deal with health care related research or dental material science, be part of public health service teams of governments, serve in private hospitals, join firms that manufacture dental hygiene products.
"Dentists have so many career options to choose from now. Current trends indicate that there is also a rewarding dental career in the field of aesthetic dentistry and dental implants," says Dr. Prabhu.
Aesthetic or Cosmetic dentistry has evolved into a multi-disciplinary component of total facial harmony. The dentist who specialises in it makes people better looking by providing them facial harmony, which applies to all the facial muscles around the mouth, gums and the teeth.
The dental implant is the permanent replacement for lost teeth. It can be done in different ways and now even a full set of teeth may be implanted into the jaw permanently through surgery. A growing number of patients are choosing implants.
Dental programmes in the UAE
- In the United Arab Emirates, the study of dentistry is still young with a few universities offering programmes in dental surgery and medicine. Ajman University of Science and Technology (AUST) established the first Oral and Dental Health Teaching Institution in the country. Its Faculty of Dentistry offering a Doctor in Dental Surgery (DDS) degree programme started functioning in the academic year 1997-1998. Currently AUST offers the programme from two campuses located in Ajman and Fujairah.
- The DDS programme is tailored to meet the oral and dental health needs of the UAE community, focusing on the prevention of the oral and dental diseases. It is a five-year undergraduate programme with a curriculum that is at par with these of some renowned international universities and dental institutes.
Students progress through a carefully structured study plan, comprising three stages — basic and medical sciences stage, pre-clinical stage and clinical stage.
The DDS degree is fully accredited by the UAE Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and widely recognised internationally as well. - The University of Sharjah commenced its College of Dentistry in 2004 and currently offers a five-year degree programme called bachelor in dental surgery (BDS) in cooperation with Adelaide University in Australia.
In the first three years students concentrate on dental clinical practice and in the fourth and fifth years, they gain experience in more advanced aspects of clinical dentistry, including oral surgery, orthodontics, paedodontics, and fixed prosthodontics. Interdisciplinary seminars are presented in Dental and Health Science that focus on and reinforce contextually relevant material from throughout the course. - Gulf Medical College in Ajman is planning to start a degree programme culminating in students becoming Doctors of Dental Medicine (DMD) this year, subject to approval of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research and RAK-CODS of RAK MHSU is all set to begin classes for its a Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) programme.
The dental curriculum that RAK-CODS follows is structured to meet all international requirements and is accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. - The BDS programme takes five years followed by a one-year internship. The programme comprises six months of general education, two years of basic medical and dental sciences and two and a half years of clinical dental sciences. This is followed by a year of internship.
- "RAK CODS will offer top quality comprehensive dental treatment in its well-equipped dental clinics. These clinics will be functional from 2009 when the first batch of dental students enters. In addition, through outreach programmes RAK CODS has concrete plans to go to the community and look at oral health concerns and offer appropriate advice and preventive measures. RAK CODS has a clear research policy too.
Community-oriented clinical research projects will be undertaken with student participation in the later years of their training. Any research data that results from this exercise would indeed be helpful for policy makers in the government in shaping their health policies for the community," says the Dean, Dr Remananda Prabhu.
Professor speak
Dr Prabhu, Dean of the College of Dental Sciences (RAK-CODS), RAK Medical and Health Sciences University (RAK MHSU) in Ras Al Khaimah, has extensive experience in a career practice spanning several countries. He has edited eight books on dentistry. He has also published papers and articles on various aspects of oral diseases while working in universities in Manipal, London, Nairobi, Khartoum, Trinidad and Tobago, Adelaide, and Riyadh and now Ras Al Khaimah.
"The journey so far has been enjoyable. I hope my past will contribute to the future of RAKCODS. I want this centre to be recognised as the leader in dental education in the region," says Dr. Prabhu, who is now also working on editing his ninth book Oral Oncology in collaboration with Professor Johnson of Griffith University.
The Textbook of Oral Diagnosis
Edited by Dr. Prabhu, the Textbook of Oral Diagnosis was published by Oxford University Press last month. On August 6, Dr Prabhu presented the first copy of the book to Shaikh Saud, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah who is also the Chancellor of the RAK MHSU.
The textbook provides essential information on the various clinical and investigative methods employed in dentistry. It is aimed at helping students in their formative years and dental practitioners to gain knowledge of all universally recognised diagnostic steps. Over 10 international authors have contributed chapters in this book. The textbook is distributed by the Oxford University Press and at RAK CODS it is the prescribed textbook for BDS students.
