FAQs
FAQ’s about Saint Francis Hospital’s General Practice Residency in Dentistry
1. Is the Program Director full or part time?
The Program Director is full-time.
2. How many residents?
There are nine resident positions. Usually there are seven first year residents and two second year or chief residents.
3. How many attending staff members are actively involved in the program?
We have three full time attending positions, with two part time attendings. We also have an active voluntary attending staff, a group of dedicated private practitioners that teach in our program. This translates into continuous resident supervision as well as providing for continuity of patient care.
4. Are the attendings general practitioners or specialists?
The department chairman, program directors, and other full time attendings are all general practitioners, who actively practice at Saint Francis. The faculty practice is a full service dental practice that provides multidisciplinary comprehensive care to a wide variety of patients. We believe in a GPR program the general dentists should be the primary role models.
5. What percent of clinics are covered by Attendings?
Residents have access to attending staff 100% of the time.
6. What specialties are represented and how much opportunity is there to work directly with them?
We have specialists in periodontology and oral and maxillofacial surgery. These attendings are a select group of dedicated private practitioners that are available to the residents in clinic on a regular basis. We encourage residents to work with these specialists on challenging cases.
7. What is the patient mix like?
Like the attending staff, residents provide general and specialty services that are directed at health promotion, disease prevention and restoration of function using advanced treatment modalities.
8. What support staff are available? i.e. assistants, reception, hygiene, secretarial?
The resident practice utilizes the same personnel as the faculty practice. Residents always have a dental assistant assigned to them. Scheduling of patients is managed by the business office. The business of the practice is managed by office personnel.
9. Is there a dental lab technician available for consultation?
There is a full time certified dental lab technician at Saint Francis who manages all of the lab cases from the faculty and resident practices. She has over 20 years of experience in removable prosthodontics.
10. Salary? Vacation?
PGY-1 stipend is $56,825. PGY-2 stipend is $59,500 for 2018-2019. In addition to the major national holidays, all residents receive two weeks paid vacation, with an additional week for continuing education. There is an additional stipend of $750 for continuing education.
11. Benefits? What Kind?
We do provide residents with medical, dental and disability benefits. Malpractice coverage is provided by the hospital.
12. What opportunities are there for C.E. off campus?
Residents are afforded a week of vacation for the sole purposes of continuing education. Together with the Program Director the resident can select the CE that is appropriate for them. The Program Director will occasionally decide the residency as a whole will attend a course if it is of general interest to the group.
13. How many hours per week seminar? How many hours clinic?
Residents are in seminar approximately 4 hours each week and in clinic 32 hours each week.
14. Is there opportunity for a second year of training?
Yes, we do offer a second year, which is a recruited position, and offered to outstanding first year residents.
15. Call responsibilities, in house vs. from home?
Residents are on call approximately once a week. Residents can take call from home, but must be within 20 minutes of the hospital. There is a very nice call room dedicated to the dental residents in the hospital. Residents are on call for all after hour in-house consults and emergency room trauma. Chief residents and oral surgery residents from the University of Connecticut provide immediate supervision when necessary.
16. Is the hospital a trauma center?
We handle 40% of the trauma in the greater Hartford metropolitan area.
17. What is typically treated in the E.R. when called?
General practice residents are on first call for all maxillofacial trauma. The most common calls are for lacerations, infections, and fractures. Toothaches are referred to the outpatient practice.
18. Is there an oral surgery residency at the same hospital? How do they interact with GPR’s?
No, we do not have an O.M.F.S. program. We consider this a plus for our residents in that they are able to obtain experiences they would not get if we did have O.M.F.S. residents. However, we do have O.M.F.S. residents from the University Of Connecticut School Of Dentistry that work very closely with our residents in the E.R..
19. Does the hospital provide housing? What is the typical rent?
No, unfortunately the hospital does not provide housing. Because of on call duties residents are required to live within 20 minutes of the hospital. If residents live outside this area than they must stay in our on call room during call. Residents have no problem finding affordable housing in the Hartford or West Hartford Area.
20. Do the GPR’s perform care in the OR? How many performed last year?
Yes, residents do provide comprehensive care in the O.R. 300 general dental cases were treated in the operating room under general anesthesia last year.
21. Does the program provide sedation experience? Nitrous?
Yes, residents are trained in nitrous oxide relative analgesia.
22. Does the program offer time for personal field study? Research?
This is an option left up to the individual resident. Participation in research or in a unique field of study related to dentistry is strongly encouraged.
23. Is there a hospital library? Dental publications?
Journal club and literature review is an important part of the residency. Saint Francis maintains a very strong library, with most current dental journals readily available. The library staff is also very supportive and will do literature searches, obtain and copy articles as needed.
24. Will the program help me find a position after completion of the residency?
The program directors are always in touch with local practitioners and professional listing services and keep residents aware of opportunities for employment.