Expert clinicians use highly structured—and often intuitive—thought processes to manage decision-making in patient care. They internalize reflective questions to help guide treatment options and provide the best care for individuals. Students and practitioners must acquire these same critical-thinking skills through practice.

During the first part of this course, we will overview the importance of critical thinking in dental practice. Relevant critical-thinking skills for treatment planning, inter-professional practice, risk assessment (caries and geriatric), social work, technology decision-making, ethical dilemmas, and literature assessment will be discussed to provide attendees with frameworks to use immediately at their practices. We’ll then switch gears after the break.

This is an exciting time to be in clinical practice in dentistry because we have an ongoing trend occurring of this fusion between clinical practice as well as our laboratory practice. The object of this presentation is to review the using of designing software in restorative and prosthetic dentistry workflows. Emphasis will be placed on everyday restorative dentistry from dentures to crowns and bridges and how it fits into clinical-laboratory practice.

Course Details

Cost:  $75
Hours:  3.5
Title: Decision Making for Digital Dentistry and Clinical Assessment
Instructors: Dr. David Johnsen, Dr. Salahaldeen Abuhammoud and Dr. Tarin Piangsuk
Registration

Part I

Clinical Decision-Making – Theory to Practice for the Practitioner

Presenter: Dr. David Johnsen

Participants should be able to:

• Define critical thinking as it relates to dental practice;
• Describe critical-thinking concepts from educational literature; and
• Provide concrete examples of critical-thinking skills for the profession of dentistry

(e.g., in treatment planning, interprofessional practice and risk assessment [caries and geriatric]).

Part II

Why Not Digital?

Presenter: Dr. Salahaldeen Abuhammoud

Part III

It’s a Good Time to Go Digital

Presenter: Dr. Tarin Piangsuk

• Discuss how to use software for everyday digital restorative dentistry whether it’s removable or fixed prosthodontics; and
• Demonstrate techniques that reduce anxiety due to this “Digital unknown” from implementing intraoral scanning, desktop scanning, 3D design and printing in order to provide better clinical care for patients.

Topic Schedule

8:30 a.m Course Introduction

8:35 – 10:00 a.m.  –Dr. Johnsen

10:00 – 10:15 a.m Break

10:15 – 12:15 p.m. – Drs. Abuhammoud and Piangsuk

 

Dr. David Johnsen, DDS, MS, is Dean Emeritus and professor in the University of Iowa College of Dentistry Pediatric Dentistry Department after spending the last 25 years serving as the Dean of the University of Iowa College of Dentistry. Dean Emeritus Johnsen has been on the faculties of West Virginia University and Case Western Reserve University. Professor Johnsen’s research has focused in two main areas, both with federal funding: innervation of teeth as an indicator of capacity to transmit pain sensory impulses and early childhood caries/caries patterns in preschoolers. The latter area included demonstration projects or consulting nationally in the Women, Infant, and Children’s (WIC) Program and the Head Start Program. Current activity is in the methodology for critical thinking learning and assessment. He has also published on a variety of clinical and educational topics. Professional service has included serving on many state, national and international boards including the Editorial Board for the Journal of the American Dental Association where he currently serves. He received the ADEA Distinguished Service Award in 2021.

Dr. Salahaldeen Abuhammoud, DDS, MS, received his DDS degree from the University of Jordan in 2011. He received a certificate in prosthodontics from the University of Iowa College of Dentistry and a master’s degree in oral science in 2018. He became a board-certified prosthodontist in 2019. Dr. Abuhammoud’s teaching activities include areas of fixed prosthodontics, removable prosthodontics, dental implants, aesthetic dentistry, and digital dentistry.

Dr. Tarin Piangsuk, DDS, MS, is a fellow associate professor in the Department of Prosthodontics at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry. He completed his DDS and MS training in his hometown at Chiang Mai University. He recently completed his certificate in prosthodontics and MS in oral science in 2021 at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry. While in training, he was exposed to digital dentistry in both patient care and research.