Admission for Internationally Trained Dentists
I am a dentist in another country. Am I eligible to apply for the GPR Program?
If you completed a program of dental education in an unregistered and unaccredited foreign dental school, you MUST complete not less than two academic years of study satisfactory to the New York State Department of Education in a registered or accredited dental school program. If you have questions about acceptable programs, contact the New York State Board for Dentistry by e-mail at dentbd@mail.nysed.gov, by phone at 518-474-3817 ext. 550 or by fax at 518-473-6995.
Application Procedure Questions
When should I apply?
The earlier the applicant applies the better. The ADEA PASS Application cycle runs from approximately mid-May through the following February.
How do I apply for the program?
Application can be made through ADEA PASS or by downloading the program application on our website.
What is the application deadline for the program?
The ADEA PASS deadline for Faxton St. Luke’s Healthcare is December 1st.
Selection Process Questions
When are applicants interviewed?
Interviews are generally scheduled after all required documents have been received and reviewed by the Selection Committee. Interviews are by invitation and are usually scheduled on pre-arranged Open House dates on Saturdays in October and November.
When are candidates for residencies selected?
Faxton St. Luke’s Healthcare participates in the National Matching Services. Applicant & Program Rank Order Lists (ROL) are submitted to the National Matching Service in early January and match results are typically announced at the end of January or early February.
Miscellaneous Program Questions
Are there tuition or fees for the program?
No.
Do I receive a stipend or will I have to pay?
Residents receive a salary that is commensurate with other General Practice Residency Programs in Upstate New York. Contact the Program Director for information on the annual stipend.
Is this GPR collaborated with a dental school? If not, why is this a benefit?
No. Residents are required to consult with attending specialists on all complicated cases rather than refer them out to a specialty clinic.
What is the patient population that you treat? Do you take insurances?
Like most GPR Programs, our patient population focuses on developmentally disabled, medically compromised and lower socioeconomic groups of individuals. As a result, the majority of patients we treat have Public Assistance (i.e., Medicaid insurance). For those procedures not covered by Public Assistance, the program has established an Uncompensated Care policy to allow for treatment of all phases of dentistry.
What is the ratio of different age populations that the residents see on average? Do you treat special needs patients?
We treat the entire age spectrum from newborns to the geriatric population. Approximately 35% of our patients are medically compromised.
What type of medical rotations are required?
Rotations include: Anesthesiology, Emergency Department, Pathology & Clinical Laboratory Medicine and Ambulance.
How many attendings do you have?
There are approximately 30 volunteer attendings.
What do you consider the programs weaknesses?
No comprehensive orthodontics.
What do you consider the programs strengths?
- Oral Surgery experience
- Digital technology (including electronic dental record, digital radiographic imaging with digital imaging for impressioning, Vita EasyShade – digital shades)
- Talented and dedicated attendings
- Dedicated auxilliary team
- Full-time program director leadership
- Program organization.
How many days are the residents on-call each month?
The dental residents equally share on-call coverage. Each resident is on-call approximately one week out of every five.
What do you look for in a dental resident?
Above all the individual must have a POSITIVE ATTITUDE. Additionally we are looking for individuals who possess the ability to be a TEAM PLAYER. The individual must be RESPONSIBLE, WILLING TO LEARN and COMPASSIONATE.
What is a typical dental resident’s day like?
Residents begin the day with a morning meeting from 7:45am to 8:45am. When the resident is not scheduled for a medical rotation, they will be scheduled for patient care from 8:45am to 12:30pm & 1:15pm to 5pm.
Do residents see the same patients?
Yes. Residents are scheduled patients for comprehensive care. Patients receive an examination on their first visit with the resident, a treatment plan is formulated and the resident is responsible for the required treatment.
Will there be experiences with implants?
Residents select potential implant cases from their patient pool and consult with attendings regarding the feasibility of placing an implant. Once approved by the attending as an acceptable procedure the resident then presents this option to the patient as an Uncompensated Care case. The procedure is offered at a significantly reduced fee. If accepted by the patient, then the patient is scheduled with the attending for placement and subsequent restoration.
Will there be experiences with crown & bridge?
Residents present all prosthetic cases for case review. Any case that meets specified criteria for full coverage will be approved for treatment. For those instances where the procedure is not reimbursed by the patient’s dental insurance, the treatment will be presented to the patient as an Uncompensated Care case. If accepted by the patient then treatment will be performed at a significantly reduced fee. Crown impressions are done by digital scanning with our iTero unit. Residents will also experience the use of a diode laser for troughing the soft tissue prior to the scan.
How many emergencies do we see on a daily basis (during regular clinical hours)?
Residents are block scheduled on a rotation basis to do new patient or periodic exams on hygiene patients. During this assigned time the resident is also responsible for screening and treating walk-in (unscheduled) dental emergencies in the clinical facility that day. The number of walk-in emergencies varies from day-to-day. Annually the program sees approximately 1,500 walk-in emergencies.
