Case Western Plans Joint M.D./D.M.D. Degree Program

Case Western University is launching an innovative joint degree program this fall that will graduate health care professionals with degrees in medicine and dentistry.

The program, the first of its kind in the country, will enroll approximately five students each fall. Students will pursue a five-year curriculum that is similar to the training that oral surgeons -- who undergo a medical residency following dental school -- undergo.

Students will qualify for dental licensure upon graduation, and for medical licensure after completion of a medical residency.

Case officials said that the program grew out of a growing appreciation for the linkages between physical and oral health. For example, recent research has found linkages between gum disease and cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and fetal development.

Graduates of the M.D./D.M.D. program are expected to be well-prepared for expanded general practice dentistry, for further dental and medical specialization, and for research careers.

Source: "Combining Medical and Dental Education," by Paul Thacker, Inside Higher Education, January 3, 2007