Palms Dental in Trenton began hosting DMD students for two-week clinical rotations in September, making them the newest addition to the UF Statewide Network for Community Oral Health.
Matthew Rooney, D.D.S., serves as courtesy faculty of the college, overseeing oral health care delivered by the DMD students. The dental center provides care for children up to the age of 21. During their first week in the center, UF dental students performed a variety of oral health procedures including extractions, space maintainers, nitrous oxide sedation and placed crowns.
The network is a combination of five UF-owned dental and education centers, and 10 affiliate partners, such as county health departments, community health centers and private, not-for-profit organizations. These centers and organizations serve as community-based rotation sites for UF College of Dentistry academic programs and provide dental students expanded clinical experiences with diverse patient populations. Predoctoral students find these rotations invaluable in developing clinical competence. The rotations expose students to additional experiences with underserved populations and foster the compassion and understanding that often leads to a lifelong commitment serving medically-underserved communities.
UF Statewide Network for Community Oral Health
The network was created in 1996 to provide external rotation sites for dental students as well as to help The provide care for patients throughout Florida, many of whom have difficulty finding access to oral health care. Each year, through UF-owned sites and community partnership sites, UF providers help care for patients from all 67 counties in Florida.
UF Owned Dental Centers
- UF College of Dentistry, Gainesville
- UF St. Petersburg Dental Center, Seminole at St. Petersburg College
- UF Hialeah Dental Center, Hialeah
- NCEF Pediatric Dental Center, Naples
- UF Health Dentistry – Wildlight/Yulee
Affiliated Dental Centers
- ACORN Dental Clinic, Brooker
- Aza Health – Eastside Dental Clinic, Gainesville
- Community Health Centers, Winter Garden and Apopka
- Florida School for the Deaf and Blind, St. Augustine
- Langley Health Dental Clinic, Ocala and Sumterville
- Marion County Health Department, Ocala (Beginning January 2024)
- Palms Dental, Trenton