Dental council moots 3-yr course

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 23

The Dental Council of India (DCI) has unanimously decided to formulate a condensed course of three years on the lines of the USA and UK.

Now, a BDS graduate can practise in the country after getting an MBBS degree.

The proposal to this effect will be forwarded to the MCI and the Government of India once it is approved by the general body. “The Dental Council of India also agreed in principle to increase the age limit of the teaching dental faculty from 65 to 70 and that of teachers of medical subjects from 70 to 75, taking into consideration the acute shortage of medical faculty in dental colleges of the country,” said Dr Jindal.

The council also laid emphasis on increasing research activities in dentistry to benefit the ailing population.

Also, it came down heavily on the commercialisation of the continuing dental education and directed the state councils to make the CDE programmes as austere as possible in the larger interests of the dentists. Dr Jindal said the council was also planning to introduce the subject of forensic dentistry and odontology in the BDS course. Forensic dentistry or forensic odontology is the proper handling, examination and evaluation of dental evidence, which will be then presented in the interest of justice. The evidence that may be derived from teeth is the age (in children) and identification of the person to whom the teeth belong. This is done using dental records, including radiographs, ante-mortem (prior to death) and post-mortem (after death) photographs and DNA.

The council is planning to hold teacher training workshops.