Impact of a periodontal honors course on educational experience and financial productivity

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the impact of a periodontal honors course on the educational experience and financial productivity of residents enrolled in the Advanced Education Program in Periodontology at the University of Minnesota. Methods: Data were collected during a semi-annual chart audit process conducted by the program director and appointed staff whereby treatment progress and individual procedures were tabulated for all assigned patients. Demographic data and financial productivity data for the residents was also collected. Data was analyzed for the 15 year period from 1998-2012 and was split in a pre-honors cohort, Cohort 1 (1998-2002, N=14), and two post-honors cohorts, Cohort 2 (2003-2007, N=15) and Cohort 3 (2008-2012, N=16) to examine the immediate and long term effects after introducing this course. Differences in resident performance in non-surgical and surgical periodontal therapy, sedation procedures and financial productivity were studied. Results: Periodontal residents performed significantly (p < 0.05) more non-surgical (scaling and root planing, periodontal maintenance), surgical (exodontia, osseous grafting, implant surgery, soft tissue grafting) and sedation procedures after instituting the periodontal honors course. During this 15 year period there was greater than a 600% increase in financial productivity by the periodontal residents with the most dramatic growth occurring in the first 3 years after instituting the periodontal honors course. Conclusion: There was an overall statistically significant improvement in the clinical experience and corresponding financial productivity of the residents in the Advanced Education Program in Periodontology after introducing the periodontal honors course. Implementation of such an honors program by other disciplines and dental schools has a strong potential to improve the quality of specialty education as well as monetarily reward the residency program and the institution as a whole.