Dentistry is the health science that addresses the prevention and treatment of injury and disease to the oral cavity and its adjacent structures. Similar to medicine, primary care remains in the hands of our general practitioner in the community. Complex and uncommon therapy is rendered by dental specialists who are officially recognized as such by the Royal College of Dentists of Ontario. Significant components of these specialized disciplines of Dentistry are, out of necessity, hospital-based. Most of the oral health care needs of the public are expertly handled by community based practitioners, but the patient with special needs, the medically compromised, the mentally challenged, the injured and those suffering devastating injury such as facial trauma or disease such as cancer, continue to need comprehensive specialized oral health care - care that can only be delivered in the hospital setting.
The Department of Dentistry is a full-service, teaching and research unit that is fully affiliated with the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at Western University. The Department of Dentistry, the General Practice Residency Program and the Oral & Maxillofacial Residency Program are all accredited by the Council of Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC).
