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In 2000, David Satcher wrote, Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General, and stated that "oral health means much more than healthy teeth," and he challenged all health providers to step up and be a part of the improvement of the nation's oral health status. Over the past few decades, the heightened awareness of these oral health inequities within the United States has resulted in public policy stakeholders and scholars, similarly calling for the improvement of the nation's oral health status. Satcher also suggested that saliva may provide clues to a patient's overall health and a possible predictor of systemic disease. There have been several articles that have demonstrated an increased risk of systemic diseases with circulating inflammatory mediators, a reduction in treatment cost for pregnant women who received treatment for their clinically diagnosed periodontal disease. Health profession education has responded to the call for transforming the health system by developing graduates who are capable for working in an environment designed to improve the overall health of patients. Therefore, this article examines why oral health professionals have a significant opportunity to contribute to the improvement overall health of patients and participate in healthcare transformation., (© 2020 American Dental Education Association.)

Dental schools use community-based dental education (CBDE) to ensure students gain experience in treating diverse and underserved patient populations. However, it is unclear to what extent schools utilize CBDE experiences to increase students' knowledge of structural factors impacting access to care. The aim of this study was to determine the level and types of non- clinical learning included in CBDE experiences and how that learning is being assessed across U.S. dental schools. This cross- sectional analysis used an 18-item questionnaire distributed to associate deans and CBDE directors at all 66 U.S. dental schools. The questions focused on rotation structure, CBDE objectives, and didactic content for CBDE programs. Representatives from 31 schools-public (71%) and private (29%)-responded, for a 44% response rate. The primary objectives for the community-based rotations were reported to be demonstrating cultural competence in diverse clinical settings (93.1%), addressing access to care (86.2%), and diagnosing and treating oral diseases (75.9%). Of the respondents, 73% reported that their schools supported clinical experiences with non-clinical didactic course work, which addressed access to care (95%), professional responsibility (91%), social determinants of health (86%), the U.S. health care system (77%), health policy (73%), practice management (73%), motivational interviewing (50%), and public presentation training (32%). The results suggest that U.S. dental schools are using CBDE rotations to provide didactic content and assessing students on their knowledge of access to care, social determinants of health, interprofessional practice, and oral health policy. These important aspects of students' education provide additional evidence of the value of CBDE in dental education.

Health professions education is extremely challenging for students, requiring high performance in fast-paced learning environments. In addition, the challenge of instructing students at many performance levels and the lack of teaching assistants can create a knowledge gap between educators and students. Using cross-year peer tutors is one potential method to close this gap and improve student performance. The aims of this study were to retrospectively evaluate the impact of a cross-year peer tutoring program on successful course completion of oral health students and to assess student and tutor perceptions of the experience. First- and second-year dental and dental therapy students were assigned to cross-year tutors as a result of progression committee recommendations and self-identification. Potential tutors were vetted by the course directors. The collected data included number of courses in which students were assigned a tutor, the type of course (lecture vs. lab), and students' success in the courses. These data were collected for a four-year period (2013-14 to 2016-17), and student and tutor perceptions were assessed in one year. The results showed that 94% of the students who received tutoring passed their courses. Students who had been tutored had a significantly lower failure rate than those who were not tutored (20% vs. 80%, respectively). These results suggest that the cross-year peer tutoring program was useful in closing the learning gap between instructors' expert level and novice learners. Participating students and tutors also perceived the program as a positive and beneficial experience.