In recent years, dentistry and related sciences have experienced an explosion of new knowledge and new technology. Population growth, increased life expectancy, higher costs of care, and growing concern for humanistic values have led to profound changes in the needs, expectations, and demands of society. Changing educational, social, and economic factors have fostered an acute public interest in personal health, and, as a result, dental practice must sharpen its focus on the recognition and prevention of abnormalities, excellent individualized treatment, and increased measures for providing these services. Dentistry is reassessing the roles of its auxiliary personnel, its obligations to all segments of the population, and its interactions with other health professions and professionals. These new objectives have forced the profession to assume greater responsibility for contributing to the universal body of scientific knowledge. The profession's goal is to improve the general health of the community by providing orofacial service that will optimize the function and duration of the individual's psychological, social, and biological well-being. The School of Dental Medicine reflects both the philosophy and objectives of the dental profession.
The mission of the School of Dental Medicine of the University of Pittsburgh is to: (1) offer superior educational opportunities in the first professional, graduate, and dental hygiene programs that will respond to the needs of the Commonwealth, as well as to the broader needs of society at large; (2) provide high-quality dental clinical services to the people of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and society at large, both within the School of Dental Medicine, as well as in the affiliated hospitals; (3) engage in research and scholarly activities that will advance knowledge and extend the frontiers of oral health; (4) offer continuing education programs reflecting recent developments and advances in dentistry, adapted to personal, professional, and career objectives of the practitioner, at the regional, national, and international levels; (5) engage in public service activities by making available the expertise and educational services ofthe School of Dental Medicine to the alumni, local community, and public agencies; (6) provide the leadership and cooperation in the development of innovative academic programs to meet the changing and dynamic educational needs of the region, the Commonwealth, and beyond.
The University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine serves the public, the profession, and its students by focusing constantly on high-quality, thorough, modern, demanding education for carefully selected dental students who become competent dentists and provide excellent dental care. Our students are our consumers and our products; we serve our students and, through them, the community and the dental profession. Our goal is to involve, invigorate, and satisfy our consumers in the student body, in the educational community, in the profession, and in the public.
As one of the University's six Schools of the Health Sciences, the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine participates in collaborative research projects with the Schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, Nursing, Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, and Public Health. Excellent educational programs are augmented by the specialized clinical experience provided in University-affliated hospitals and centers. New areas of research are identified to meet the oral health needs of an increasingly well informed public.
Research efforts are continually expanding to address society's new concerns. Novel programs are currently underway in the following areas: Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Center, Clinical Pharmacology and Dental Therapeutics Program, Molecular Mechanisms of the Immunologic and Microbial Pathogenesis of Periodontal Disease, Salivary Research, and Oral Health Epidemiology.
Areas that are being targeted for further development include: oral implantology; clinical applications of lasers, imaging, and other high-technology advances; geriatric oral health; and evaluation of oral health, risk assessment, and intervention strategies for special populations, such as osteoporotic women and diabetic adults.