Program Director
Associate Professor Sharon Liberali (Special Needs Specialist)

Academic Staff
Professor Lindsay Richards (Prosthodontist)
A/Professor Paul Sambrook (Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon)
Professor Richard Logan (Oral Pathologist)
Prof Sam Gue (Paediatric Specialist)
Dr Andrew Cheng (Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon)

Contributing Staff
Dr Mark Gryst (Visiting Consultant/Special Needs Specialist)
Dr Dymphna Cudmore (Clinical Leader/Dentist–Aged Care/SRF)
Dr Mira Holowiecki (Clinical Leader/Dentist – TQEH)
Ms Margie Steffens (Senior SND Hygienist – SRF/Homeless)
Ms Claire McNally (Senior SND Hygienist – Med Compromised)

More information is available on MyUni.

The learning outcomes for the year are to provide students with the skills and knowledge to progress into the higher years of the course.

1. Development of the necessary advanced clinical skills expected of a specialist in Special Needs Dentistry
2. Appreciation of the scientific basis for successful clinical specialist practice
3. Development of scientific and research methodology relating to clinical specialist practice
4. Development research skills related to clinical specialist practice

Ultimately, the learning outcome is to provide students with the abilities to practice independent clinical special needs dentistry.

Textbooks, scientific journal, website, Eleanor Harrold Library, University of Adelaide Library, MyUni, access to materials to undertake research, Adelaide Dental Hospital Special Needs Unit, The Queen Elizabeth Special Needs Dental Unit , Royal Adelaide Hospital including Theatre complex, Women’s and Children’s Hospital Dental Unit and Community Dental clinics of SA Dental Service.

Recommended resources for the course are a high level of commitment and dedication to special needs dentistry.

Minimal online learning is applicable to this course.

The University of Adelaide's postgraduate program in Special Needs Dentistry is a three-year full time course that provides advanced study and training in all areas of this specialty. At the completion of the program Graduates will be prepared for specialty practice in the public and private sector, or academia and research.

The curriculum is conducted over three years (six semesters, two 24 week semesters per year in accord with the University calendar). Postgraduate Students attend the course continuously throughout each year. Typically about two weeks of leave are available during the period when the Adelaide Dental Hospital is partially closed over the Christmas/New Year period.

While clinics and research projects continue in the inter-semester breaks, the lecture/seminar program is limited to the semesters. The structure of the current program is comprised of didactic, clinical and research components, delivered over the three-year full time course of study. In accord with national and international benchmarks, the distribution of these components during each year is approximately two-third course work (50% clinical experience, 17% didactic instruction) and one-thirds research-type activities, with evidence-based learning underpinning the acquisition of knowledge.

Candidates must attend research seminars, training courses and meetings, coursework seminars, clinical sessions and other relevant courses as required by the Program Director. Candidates will be expected to maintain a logbook of clinical cases treated throughout their candidature that summarises the clinical work performed in the principal subject areas for presentation to the examiners at interim and final clinical examinations.

Candidates must also complete research training, specified research activites and a minor research project.

The program is divided into two principal components:

1. Structured Program
• Research methods, experimental design and ethics
• Coursework
• Clinical experience
• Professional development

2. Research
• Research seminars
• Research training
• Research project

STRUCTURED PROGRAM
Research methods, experimental design and ethics This course is presented in a series of seminars during the first six months of the program. It consists of a series of lectures, seminars and workshops that provide an introduction to research literature, research methods, critical thought, management of research data, ethics and other relevant topics required to undertake research.

Coursework
Course work includes clinical teaching, assigned reading for weekly seminars, student prepared guided assignments/essays, case reports and on-line lectures to enable students to gain knowledge in the areas of patient examination, diagnosis, treatment planning, and management in Special Needs Dentistry, and a range of Special Needs Dentistry techniques. The seminars are conducted in a journal club format with a primary focus on current literature but the foundational evidence base is also incorporated so that topics of interest may be explored in depth.

The list of seminar topics is specifically designed to provide a focus for further guided study using problem based learning to encourage students to develop skills that enable a critical assessment of the evidence base, the clinical practice of Special Needs Dentistry.

Students will also have an opportunity to participate in a range of interdisciplinary seminars with post-graduate students enrolled at the University of Adelaide in other Dental specialty training programs, as well as those enrolled in Medicine and Allied Health programs.

There is also an opportunity to participate in monthly or bi-monthly seminars (8 per academic year) with post-graduate students enrolled in specialist training programs in Special Needs Dentistry at the University of Sydney, University of Queensland and the University of Melbourne.

Clinical Teaching
Clinical experience is provided in the Special Needs Unit, Adelaide Dental Hospital (ADH) under the supervision of staff of the University of Adelaide and SA Dental Service, as well as other major teaching hospitals where Special Needs Dental Units exist including The Queen Elizabeth Hospital (TQEH), and Women’s and Children’s Hospital (WCH). Clinical experience may also occur at community dental clinics of the SA Dental Service, and other locations including supported residential facilities and the at Common Ground complex as part of the University of Adelaide’s community outreach program.
 
Advanced Clinical Practice I, II and III, held in Years 1-3, are the specialist clinical training courses of the DClinDent program in Special Needs Dentistry. These courses have both theoretical and clinical components, and are designed to foster the development of advanced clinical skills in the full scope of Special Needs Dentistry that are required for practice at specialist level. As students gain experience and competence they are expected to manage a wider range of individuals with special needs at a specialist standard, including treatment using sedation or general anaesthesia as appropriate.

All students are rostered to a minimum of five clinical sessions per week, with interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary patient care forming part of the clinical experience. Students will interface with medical and surgical units of the Royal Adelaide Hospital and The Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

All students are required to participate in one undergraduate clinical teaching session per week and to attend clinical meetings. Students will adopt a holistic approach to the delivery of patient care, and take responsibility for identifying, implementing and monitoring their own learning goals as they work across these different clinical environments. Undertaking clinical work across different facilities is compulsory for successful completion of the program, and an essential part of Special Needs Dentistry.

Professional Development
Participation in continuing education courses The ANZ Academy of Special Needs Dentistry is the representative specialist body for specialists in SND, and therefore postgraduate students (who have a class of membership) are encouraged to become Student Members. Students will be encouraged to attend international SND meetings and, where appropriate, present clinical and research reports at conferences including those organized by the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Special Needs Dentistry (ANZASND), Australian Society of Special Care Dentistry (ASSCID), New Zealand Society of Hospital and Community Dentistry (NZSHCD), International Association of Disability and Oral Health (iADH), and Special Care Dental Association (SCDA).

RESEARCH
Research Training and Research Project
This component of the program is designed to provide training in the developmental and practical elements of biomedical research. It is based on the philosophy of research as the basis of biomedical science. Students will be asked to evaluate published, current and future research as the basis of clinical practice with the expectation of research forming the platform for life-long learning.

The workload model is based on 24 teaching weeks per semester and has an approximately work load of 37.5 hours per week. This is a guide only and will vary depending on topics and the students understanding.

Clinical Component: 5-6 clinical sessions per week
Seminar/tutorial (Diagnosis, treatment planning and case reviews): 1 per week/semester
Contemporary Didactic Seminars: 1 per week/semester

Didactic seminars are based on the requirements of the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons (RACDS) and also the iADH Special Needs/Care Dentistry postgraduate curriculum document which details 8 key areas required for didactic study and clinical experience:

• The Professional, Political and Ethical Context of Special Care Dentistry
• Impairment, disability and oral health
• Medical sciences related to special needs dentistry
• Psychology related to special Needs dentistry
• Dental public health and oral health promotion
• Oral health care planning and teamwork
• Clinical special needs dentistry
• Research and governance

To be advised by course co-ordinator on commencement.

Details will be made available on MyUni.

To be advised by course co-ordinator on commencement.

Formative Review
Postgraduate students are assessed continuously throughout their training through regular formative review with senior teaching and clinical staff however the emphasis of the program is on self motivated learning and evaluation. Assessment includes an overview of clinical case mix, amount of clinical experience and standard of patient care. Deficient areas are discussed with clinical supervisors and remedied together with the postgraduate student. In all years, students are assessed on a continuing basis in the conduct of the research project, clinics and seminars. In addition they are expected to complete assignments on aspects of the seminar topics.

Summative Assessment
Students will receive continuous assessment of their clinical work, assignments, seminar involvement and seminar presentations. Formal barrier, written, viva-voce and clinical examinations will be undertaken at the mid point of the program (end Semester 1, Year 2).

Comprehensive written, viva voce and oral examinations conducted by internal and external examiners will be held in October / November of the 3rd year, with the inclusion of an exit interview at the end of this year. Twelve “achievement” case reports selected by the student are required at the end of the 3rd year.

The principle of the “achievement” case reports is to ensure a broad range of clinical cases have been managed, detailing treatment provided and supported by current research literature. The reports should include as wide a variety as possible of patients with special needs to reflect the scope of practice of the clinician. The following case selection is recommended:

• Dental management of a patient with complex medical condition
• Dental management of a Head & Neck Cancer patient
• Dental management of a patients requiring maxillo-facial prosthodontics
• Dental management of a transplant patient (pre-transplant to post-transplant)
• Dental management of a patient with developmental disability (ideally including invasive treatment under GA and ongoing preventive management) 
• Dental management of a patient with mental illness or dental anxiety/phobia
• Dental management of a patient with neuro-degenerative disease
• Dental management of a patient in a Residential Care Facility
• Trauma management of a patient requiring Special Needs Dentistry
• Complex restorative management of a patient requiring Special Needs Dentistry
• Dental management of a patient requiring palliative care
• 1 other (candidates choice).

Portfolio/Logbook Requirements
Students will complete a comprehensive logbook of patients that will serve as a reference of the relative clinical case mix of patients seen; treatments performed and will aid continual assessment. The registrar logbooks will be audited at the end of each semester. This process will aid in the clinical experience all postgraduate students receive and to ensure that the postgraduate student is exposed to a wide variety of cases. The logbook will also form part of the clinical assessment for each semester and will form part of their overall assessment during their final examination in October / November of the third year.

Evaluations/Peer Assessments
Examination of students by persons external to the University of Adelaide for both oral and written examinations in third year, is the benchmark for competent independent clinical practice. Research is examined at the end of the program by an internal and external examiner. The University requires that all higher degree students complete an exit survey prior to program completion.

Details will be made available on MyUni.