Mission Statement

The Department of Diagnosis & Oral Health will support the University of Louisville School of Dentistry in its missions to provide quality dental care to the community; to provide contemporary education and service programs; and with the Research Group in Oral Health and Systemic Disease, to conduct state-of-the-art research to advance dental science.

Goal

The Department will share responsibility for creating an environment that will produce competent dental professionals with appropriate social and technical skills and a commitment to life-long learning, scholarship, and ethical practice. The Department will support this goal with a balanced program of teaching, scholarship, and service activities.

Objectives

• Provide students with the professional knowledge and skills required for competency in the appropriate discipline-specific clinical procedures.
• Prepare post-doctoral students in the specialty programs of endodontics and periodontics for clinical practice, teaching and/or research.
• Prepare students to successfully challenge mock boards, state and regional boards, and national boards.
• Encourage the use of teaching methods that will enhance and foster critical thinking.
• Provide appropriate in-service training and support professional development for faculty and staff.
• Explore new curriculum ideas and implement changes as needed in a timely fashion.
• Promote interdisciplinary cooperation and responsibilities in the didactic and clinical programs for quality education and patient care.
• Support interdisciplinary collaborations between the basic and clinical sciences to advance the treatment of patients through evidence-based approaches.
• Support faculty, staff, and student’s ability to conduct quality basic, clinical and translational research.
• Support faculty and students to seek extramural funding for scholarly activity and research endeavors.
• Support the dissemination of scholarly activity through publication in professional journals, books, proceedings of symposia, and presentations of research findings at national and international meetings.
• Support personal development.
• Support presentation of continuing education courses.
• Support active participation in local, state, national, and international professional organizations and community, departmental, dental school, and university organizations.
• Provide the opportunity for faculty practice or consulting for all full-time faculty in accordance with the School of Dentistry guidelines.
• Support participation with health-oriented groups to improve the health and quality of life in the community.