General Practice Residency
Advanced Training Program in Dentistry

Welcome | Director's Message | Program Objectives | Curriculum | Faculty | Faculty Guest Lecturers | Rotations
Community Service | Salary and Benefits | Clinic Staff | Meet the 2008-2009 Residents
Application Process | Criteria for Resident Selection | Non-Discriminatory Policy

Welcome

Director's Message

L. Stanley Brysh, DMD, FAAHD, DABSCD

Welcome to the Meriter GPR Web page. You have reached an important decision point in your career. The following information is designed to give you some insight into the advantages of a General Practice Residency. Some of these important advantages are available in nearly all accredited programs:

• Exposure to and treatment of the medically compromised patient.
• An opportunity to complete dental cases of greater complexity than those you were able to complete in dental school.
• Additional medical training to enable you to adequately diagnose and treat medical emergencies.
• Exposure to complex trauma cases.
• Exposure to a wider number of pathology cases.
• A starting point for pursuing hospital dentistry as a career.
• A starting point for entry into a specialty program.

• Efficient, high-quality, one visit endodontics using rotary instrumentation and warm gutta percha filling techniques.
• How to surgically place and restore implants.
• Rapid, high-quality crown and bridge techniques.
• The precepts and techniques needed to perform accelerated dentistry.
• Exposure to numerous active private practitioners through our office visitation program.
• How to understand the business of dentistry.

Program Objectives

1. To prepare residents, through didactic instruction and clinical experience, to become providers of comprehensive general dentistry services at a level beyond that achieved in their pre-doctoral education.

2. To train residents to become primary care providers for diverse groups of patients, including those with special needs and complex medical problems, through the delivery of emergency and comprehensive oral health care in a hospital setting.

3. To foster an attitude of community service in residents through the patient care of under-served population groups, involvement in community service activities and patient education, and faculty example that will be continued by the resident after graduation.

4. To increase the resident's ability to effectively manage the delivery of oral health care by instructing him/her in current patient and practice management skills and quality improvement techniques.

5. To instill in residents a commitment to lifelong learning and professional development through the growth of critical thinking skills and faculty mentoring.

Specifically, the program is designed to:

• Increase clinical speed and efficiency in procedures involving all aspects of general dentistry.
• Develop practice management skills.
• Improve diagnosis and treatment planning of all phases of dentistry with respect to administering comprehensive dental treatment in the context of a patient's total health care needs.
• Develop an in-depth understanding of medicine and the relationship between systemic disease and the proposed dental treatment.
• Develop the ability to provide dental treatment to patients with underlying medical conditions.
• Enhance the ability to recognize and manage common medical/dental emergencies.
• Develop confidence in functioning both within a hospital setting and as a member of the health care team via consultation with other health care professionals.
• Develop proficiency in medical history taking and physical examination techniques.
• Enhance knowledge of diagnostic laboratory values and the ability to request and interpret proper tests and values.
• Enhance knowledge of current pharmacological therapeutics and the relationship to dental treatment.
• Enhance knowledge of current dental literature and develop the skill to communicate with colleagues through case presentations and discussions.

Curriculum

Patient treatment by Dental Residents is performed in the Max W. Pohle Dental Clinic at Meriter Hospital. The clinic is a new, well-equipped facility that resembles a private practice. A tray system is used for most instrument set-ups and a variety of supply materials are available for resident use. Teaching staff specialists and general practitioners are scheduled in the clinic on half-day rotations Monday through Friday. The number of patients requesting treatment in the clinic far exceeds the needs of the program. All patient appointments are scheduled in advance, with the exception of emergency patients. Disruption of the normal schedule is minimized by the development of rapid diagnostic skills and increasing utilization of dental assistant expanded duties as the year progresses. All patients accepted for treatment at the clinic are assigned to a specific resident. Each resident is responsible for continually monitoring the progress of his or her group of active patients. Training is given in the following areas throughout the year: General Practice Endodontics Implant Dentistry Cosmetic Dentistry Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Practice Management Periodontics Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics Orthodontics Pediatric Dentistry Emergency Care Patient Hospital Admissions Inpatient Consultations Operating Room Dentistry The didactic program consists of: Lectures by the dental teaching staff. Patient care conferences with the Director to discuss and develop treatment plans and monitor the progress of patient care. Journal Club sessions at which the residents abstract current journal articles. Dental Staff meetings in which residents give formal case presentations to the teaching staff. Research Presentation – each resident selects a topic and prepares a formal oral and written presentation to the Department of Dentistry at the end of the residency year. In addition, a variety of medical conferences and seminars are held each month at Meriter Hospital. Residents are encouraged to attend and participate in any presentations that are of interest to them. Residents also attend the Chicago Dental Society Midwinter Meeting, local dental society meetings and select continuing education courses.

Faculty

The following 29 faculty members educate residents in all areas of dentistry and practice management. Each one is a full time private practitioner and attends the clinic on at least a monthly basis.

Faculty Guest Lecturers

Rotations

• Anesthesiology – a two-week rotation at Meriter Hospital.
• Physical Diagnosis – independent study sessions with one-on-one instruction and practical experience.
• Emergency Medicine – a two-week rotation at Meriter Hospital Emergency Services.
• Temporomandibular Dysfunction – A lecture series, supplemented with clinic observation at the University of Wisconsin Medical Center TMD Clinic.
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery – Clinic observation and interaction with OMFS faculty in their private practice.
• Faculty office visitations.

Community Service

The Max W. Pohle Dental Clinic is proud of its long history of service to the community. While the program emphasizes preparation for private practice, graduate residents are expected to continue contributing to the public as they progress through their careers. The late Dr. Max Pohle and the faculty serve as excellent examples of the balance needed in a successful practitioner between business success and treatment of the underserved.
 
During the year residents participate in a county-wide school sealant program, community health checks that include oral examinations, a school nurse program that allows them to treat school children with acute dental needs and no financial resources, and much more.

Salary and Benefits

• Health and dental insurance at a reduced rate
• Malpractice insurance
• Disability insurance
• Tax-deferred annuity programs
• Use of an exercise facility
• Other benefits

Residents also receive two weeks paid vacation.

Clinic Staff Highly skilled and experienced dental auxiliaries are an integral part of the program. Each resident can expect chairside assistance over 95% of the time.

Meet the 2008-2009 Residents

	Andrew Maples, DMD amaples@meriter.com University of Florida "My educational experience at the Meriter general practice residency has far exceeded my expectations and has fully reinforced why I believe a one year post-graduate program is immensely beneficial for recent graduates. I will enter private practice with the ability and confidence to offer diverse, predictable, and exceptional treatment to the patients in my community. There is no way to place a value on the clinical experiences offered at this particular GPR. Throughout the course of the residency my clinical speed has significantly improved for routine dental treatment, while bolstering the quality of my treatment at the same time. In addition, the constant exposure to more advanced/specialty treatments has adequately prepared me to expand upon my services in these areas of dentistry. As a resident, we are fortunate to have a friendly and dedicated faculty who provide valuable experience and information in treatment planning, emergency/hospital dentistry, endodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, orthodontics, oral surgery, pediatric dentistry, implant dentistry, esthetic dentistry, and CEREC. In addition to our practice in the Max Pohle Dental Clinic, the rotations in anesthesia, emergency medicine, and oral surgery are very enjoyable and beneficial. This GPR is extremely lucky to have physicians, oral surgeons, and nurses who take time out of their private practices to offer additional training that ultimately prepares the residents to become well-rounded healthcare providers. The friendly and helpful clinical staff cannot be ignored. Residents almost never provide dental treatment without an assistant, and the daily clinic schedule is well managed by the staff, allowing the residents to primarily focus on the practice of dentistry. Most importantly, Dr. Brysh is a devoted and enthusiastic program director who is well aware of the resident needs and constantly goes out of his way to ensure that the our educational goals are satisfied. He is also more than willing to spend time outside of clinic hours to provide additional educational opportunities. The GPR at Meriter Hospital has been a priceless experience and has been an outstanding transition from dental school to private practice. The opportunity to live in and serve the Madison community has also been fantastic. I highly recommend this program to any graduating dental student looking for unique and diverse post-graduate training."
	Nicholas Sabel, DDS nsabel@meriter.com Marquette University "The general practice residency program at Meriter Hospital has given me the transition I was looking for between having no responsibility in dental school to the complete independence of private practice. After graduating from dental school I was only comfortable with basic dental procedures. Meriter’s GPR program has allowed me to expand my knowledge and proficiency of the specialty areas by surrounding me with faculty who are pioneers and leaders in their respective fields. Because of their mentorship, I now feel comfortable providing quality and efficient care in the areas of endodontics, oral surgery, implantology, Cad-Cam dentistry, esthetics, prosthodontics, pediatrics, and restorative dentistry. These skills, along with exposure to emergency care for dental trauma and infections, as well as an introduction to dental rehabilitation of special care patients in a surgical setting, has given me the prospect of providing exceptional care in all phases of dentistry. I would consider the educational experience at Meriter excellent not only because of the prominent faculty, but also because of the experienced and friendly staff. They provide a comfortable and stress-free clinic setting, allowing me the time necessary to focus on quality dentistry. Meriter’s general practice residency program has taken the foundation established in dental school and built upon it a skyscraper of knowledge and skill. I now feel comfortable providing comprehensive care at the highest level to the community."
	Sarah Westberg, DMD swestberg@meriter.com Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health "Fresh out of dental school I was looking for a residency program that would incorporate the fast pace and variety of general practice with exposure to more complex cases in every specialty. This is exactly what I found in the Meriter GPR program. This transitional year allows me the opportunity to work with a diverse population and grow in my knowledge and abilities. Dentists and specialists from the Madison area serve as expert faculty, augmenting the educational experience and aiding in patient care. With the intention of working in Wisconsin I also appreciate the opportunity I’ve had to meet oral health care providers in the area. What makes the Meriter GPR program so unique is its enthusiastic and supporting staff. Residents are encouraged to be involved and ask questions. Feedback is continual and there is freedom to create your own educational opportunities where appropriate. For example, the residents this year have shown a special interest in Cerec restorations and the faculty has responded by providing more opportunities to work with this technology. Beyond accelerating my experiences in the dental profession this program provides a fun working environment. I am confident that after completing this GPR program I will be ready to 'hit the ground running' in private practice. Not only will I be a better practitioner for my experience here, but I will have a network of colleagues and friends in the area to help me continue my educational growth."

Application Process

Criteria for Resident Selection

The Meriter Hospital GPR Selections Committee evaluates the following criteria to establish an applicant's suitability for the residency program:

• Grade point average
• Class rank
• National Board scores
• Letters of recommendation
• Applicant essay
• Extracurricular activities
• Resident interview
  

Non-Discriminatory Policy

1/29/2009