hapTEL, an interdisciplinary project funded by two UK research councils from 2007 to 2011, involves a large interdisciplinary team (with undergraduate and post-graduate student participants) which has been developing and evaluating a virtual learning system within an HE healthcare education setting, working on three overlapping strands. Strand 1…

Specific teaching programs in dental care for the handicapped at each of The Robert Wood Johnson grant-supported institutions are summarized. Curriculum, clinical experience, student-faculty attitudes, community impact, patient procurement, and didactic instruction are reviewed. (JMF)

A continuing education program implemented at the University of Illinois in Chicago is described. The goals of the program were: to provide a comprehensive, long-term approach to continuing education; to emphasize the role of participants in curriculum development; and to use learning strategies that maximize clinical participation. (MLW)

A group of dental students participated in a stress management program that included instruction in self-relaxation and time management, exercise and leisure planning, and cognitive modification techniques. The importance of stress-management training for dental students and suggestions for future research are discussed. (MLW)

A program in one of the National Institutes of Health offers clinical training fellowships as a means of training potential dental school faculty by providing both unique clinical skills and high-quality research experience. The program was developed in response to a perceived need for change in academic dentistry. (MSE)

The practice of comprehensive or total patient care at the University of North Carolina School of Dentistry student clinics is described. In response to current reviews the system is preparing for innovations designed to enhance the delivery of care and maximize the student educational experience. (MLW)

Marquette University's experience with two extramural clinics are described. Students spend six weeks at these sites, primarily to involve them in assessing and caring for the dental health needs of patients whose ethnic, cultural, and economic backgrounds are different from the populations at a clinic on campus. (MLW)

Three common arguments against formal classes in professional ethics are examined. A minimum curriculum in dental professional ethics is proposed and a proposed program in professional ethics in dentistry is appended. (MLW)

Abstracts of presentations concerning educational research and new programs to be made at the 62nd annual meeting of the American Association of Dental Schools (Las Vegas, March 17-20, 1985) are given. (MSE)

A program for training dental nurses in Surinam is described whose objective is to alleviate a serious labor shortage. Its unique characteristics include an extra year of training for advanced techniques, absence of direct supervision, and acceptance by the national professional association for dentists. (MSE)

The Pew National Dental Education Program has attempted to provide a focus for redirecting the mission, programs, and work of dental education. Its objective was to assist dental schools in long-term change in response to the needs of the public and to play a leadership role within the profession. (MLW)

To treat the elderly more competently and to provide clinical training to undergraduates simultaneously, a geriatric dental program was initiated in 1976 at the University of Illinois College of Dentistry. The program's current status and operation are described. (Author/MLW)

The University of Washington's program of Dental Education in Care of the Disabled is described. It is designed to train dental and dental hygiene students to respect, understand, and serve handicapped patients with knowledge and skill, while meeting special patient needs and using effective inter- and intraprofessional collaboration. (JMF)

A program in peer review and quality assessment at the University of Michigan denture department is described. The program exposes students to peer review in order to assess the quality of their treatment. (Author/MLW)

A model program in dentistry for the handicapped offered at the University of Tennessee and supported by a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant is described. The program includes didactic instruction, observation and seminar, and clinical practice. (JMF)