jpollei said:
And certainly much appreciated. My initial comments were merely trying to show the other perspective from what is usually posted when then OEC discussion arises.
Specialty decisions
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And certainly much appreciated. My initial comments were merely trying to show the other perspective from what is usually posted when then OEC discussion arises.
jpollei said:
Please explain your line of thinking to me in regards to the above statement. More ortho graduates = less work for you in the future?
Don?t fool yourself concerning the academics/caseloads at OEC versus other programs. It's hard to evaluate even well established programs on criteria that you listed (ie, cleft lip/cleft palate, implant assisted ortho, orthagnathic cases, dealing with impactions, mounting cases with face bows and in CR, conducting research, etc ). You may be surprised how many/few orthognathic cases some residents actually will see through completion or how many cases are mounted, etc. Considering that the livelihood of OEC is on the line you can bet Lazzara is going to get his residents trained and board eligible by the time they finish their programs, barring accreditaion issues. He?s got pockets so deep that he could provide more than enough free ortho to get patients into these programs if it came down to it. Right now, OEC has the potential to control 40+ of about the 250 new orthodontic graduates every year. In a decade or two, Lazzara has the potential to own a large share of the ortho maket, more than Coast, Heartland, Western dental combined. OEC essentially has control of the faucet of new orthodontic graduates annually.
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I disagree with your statement that it is difficult to compare programs based on the handful of miscellaneous criteria I mentioned. An applicant has but to ask the residents or faculty how many cases are mounted or roughly how many orthagnathic cases residents treat. I do agree that programs vary greatly with such experience. However my gut feeling at the moment, with admittedly no facts to back it up, is that OEC programs provide little variety in teaching methods and little experience in the vast array of more complex orthodontics. However, at the end of the day it isn't my skepticism that matters, it's that of the body of the AAO.
DDSlave, I misspoke in saying that you cannot "compare" programs in terms of the experiences/techniques/exposures that each would provide during residency. I agree with you completely, as you could easiily compare what one program offers versus another. However, to think that all established residency programs can offer a better experience to the criteria you listed versus what these new ones will provide may be wishful thinking. Even if you are not considering ortho, but for any other readers, I think you would be very suprised at how many "established" programs fall short in the criteria previously mentioned. Money speaks volumes and I am sure Lazzara can provide much of what any accrediting body may require from these programs as far as training residents. He has to if OEC has any chance of survival. Drs. Pelle and Jerrold are not new to the academic ortho arena and combined with Lazzara's financial backing, I would not doubt the qualtiy of the training. Look at Nova, it was the newest dental program when I was in school. However, its established itself as a reputable school, right? Why would these ortho programs be any different? The bigger problem (as you alluded to earlier) is guaranteeing 12-14 OEC "sponsored" residents positions annually in these programs. There are basically 2 different applicant piles in front of the admissions committee, OEC and non-OEC "scholarship" applicants. Guaranteeing acceptance of applicants who are on "scholarship" by private for-profit corporations seems pretty questionable to me. As I understand it JU, Colorao, and UNLV are required to have a minimum amount of OEC residents. Citibank may pay for my MBA, but I still have to get accepted on criteria regardless of who will be paying my tuition. This seems not the case with these new programs.