Dental Operating Room Fellowship

The Department of General Dentistry offers a one-year Dental Operating Room Fellowship created to meet the growing demand of the special needs population. Dr. O. Lee Wilson, Chair, Dentistry, has been working with special needs children for more than 27 years through the Department of General Dentistry, and he has found that the best method to treat overly sensitive patients is to take them into the operating room so that they can be put to sleep under anesthesia.

Fellows who participate in the Dental Operating Room Fellowship are required to have completed one year of residency training, and two years is preferred. The applicant must possess a DMD/DDS and a State of Tennessee Dental License. During the program, the fellow will rotate between the departments of Anesthesia, Medicine, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, and Pre-Op Clinic. The fellow will manage the Dental Simulation Center as well as teach and train the general practice residents. The fellow will also present at the Annual Special Care Dental Meeting. At the end of the one-year experience, the fellow will be properly equipped to practice in the operating room setting to treat the special needs population.

Dental fellowships are considered rare, and a mechanism for accreditation does not yet exist. A generous donation from Delta Dental will help fund the program.