The one-year General Practice Residency (GPR) in Dentistry at WellSpan York Hospital may well be the most impactful year of your career.
Our program focuses on providing advanced training and clinical experience in:
- diagnostic sciences
- preventive dentistry
- restorative dentistry
- periodontics
- pedodontics
- rotary endodontics
- implantology
- dental trauma
- oral surgery
The program teaching staff includes a full-time program director and assistant program director, along with full-time general practice attendings. These professionals are assisted by volunteer dental specialists and generalists who have a high degree of competence in all areas of dentistry addressed in the program.
In addition, the residency features a regular schedule of lectures and seminars headed by local and visiting faculty. We also encourage you to participate in the York County Dental Society and attend continuing education courses they sponsor.
Personalized attention is a successful ingredient in our GPR. Our residents are encouraged to work independently and develop a practice philosophy unique to them. To facilitate this, we have senior faculty available for recommendations and assistance when needed.
Comprehensive curriculum
WellSpan York Hospital's GPR program prepares its residents to:
- diagnose oral and maxillofacial diseases and provide dental care appropriate to the health care needs of each patient
- develop and deliver both routine and complex dental care strategies for a wide variety of patients through the integration of their acquired advanced knowledge and clinical skills
- function and communicate effectively with other health care professionals in a variety of settings, with a full comprehension of each professional's function and the intricate organization established within that setting, using the electronic medical record to enhance communication and collaboration
- pursue individual areas of interest within their chosen field to successfully achieve career goals
See full program goals and objectives.
Training delivered primarily in the context of patient care
Formal educational activities, including BLS certification, are designed to supplement the invaluable clinical experience you receive. Our comprehensive didactic programs include:
- nitrous oxide sedation
- medical risk assessment
- inpatient care
- same-day surgery care
- infection control
- quality assurance
- principles of office management
- analysis of hospital organization and function
An integral part of our GPR in dentistry is the formal instruction and clinical application of physical diagnosis and medical risk assessment. You’ll become proficient in obtaining a patient's medical history and ordering and interpreting laboratory, radiographic and other data as needed to devise and implement dental therapy for hospitalized and ambulatory patients.
Through the resident workups of inpatients and same-day surgery patients, you’ll acquire valuable clinical experience in medical assessment. You can further refine this skill during rotations in anesthesia, internal medicine, mobile dentistry and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs).
You’ll also gain experience in requesting and reviewing consultations for inpatients and responding to requests for consultations from other service entities.
Teaching a full range of emergency techniques
Our dental residents receive training and experience in emergency medicine and dental emergency procedures that enable them to anticipate, diagnose and treat emergencies that coincide with dental procedures. They also learn how to anticipate, evaluate and manage systemic emergencies.
Intensive clinical experience and direction provide you with professional competence in the diagnosis and treatment of emergency problems related to the oral cavity. This experience will enhance the essential skills needed to diagnose and provide primary care for acute infections of oral origin, acute disorders of the oral mucosa, hemorrhage of the oral cavity and traumatic injuries to the dental and maxillofacial structures.
Patient assessment, treatment of dental and alveolar fractures and the early or initial management of fractures of facial bones are also included in this focus.
In-depth training in key clinical areas
To broaden the scope of expertise developed, each resident is assigned rotations outside dentistry in the following departments:
- anesthesia
- internal medicine
- mobile dentistry
- FQHCs
In each of these assignments, you’ll serve in an active capacity in the professional management of patients.
With formal instruction and clinical experience in pain control, the anesthesia rotation helps you gain vital knowledge and experience in the management of patients undergoing general anesthesia. The experience focuses on:
- preoperative evaluation
- assessment of the effects of pharmacological agents
- venipuncture techniques and administration of IV agents
- patient monitoring
- airway management
- intubation
- prevention and treatment of anesthetic emergencies
Chief resident position
The chief residency assignment is an excellent opportunity to practice advanced dentistry at WellSpan York Hospital while assuming a vital leadership role.
The breadth of additional hospital and clinical training, in conjunction with the teaching and administrative experience gained, will enhance the selected chief resident’s marketability and stature as a dental professional.
A chief resident should:
- have an encompassing understanding of hospital dentistry
- possess the capacity for accelerating independence
- be willing to accept the challenge of managing responsibilities in a multitude of areas, such as comprehensive patient care, teaching and administration
Specific duties assigned to the chief resident include:
- functioning as the liaison between the program director, assistant program director and first-year residents
- serving as a role model to first-year residents via clinical judgement, patient management skills and dedication to the residency program
- administering in-house patient consultation services and outpatient clinic emergency services
- making rounds in the event of the program director’s absence
- maintaining availability for back-up call
- monitoring first-year resident activities and scheduling special lectures and events
- participating in weekly seminars assigned by the program director
- directly supervising first-year residents and fourth-year students
- participating in quality assurance and continuous quality improvement programs in the department
- taking part in the residency application and interview process for the following year’s residents
- participating in available research activity
- providing direct patient care involving implantology and more complex restorative cases
The chief resident will be designated PGY-2 and will receive a base salary plus benefits equal to other PGY-2 residents in the hospital. They will have one week for their education conference with a generous limit of reimbursement expenses.
Other benefits of this assignment include free hospital meals and clinic clothing provision and laundering.
The residency year begins July 1 and lasts one calendar year.
To apply, please call Amy Hendry, Dental GPR Program Coordinator, at 717-851-2071 weekdays between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Eastern time.
