General Practice Residency Program for General Dentists

The OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center General Practice Residency (GPR) Program is a 12 month, full time program designed for general dentists seeking advanced clinical training in a hospital-based setting.

Training takes place primarily at:

  • OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center
  • OSF Dental Clinic – Forest Park
  • OSF Dental Clinic – Sheridan

Additional training may take place at other locations, such as OSF HealthCare Cancer Institute and our dental faculty offices.

The program follows the standards of the Council on Dental Accreditation (CODA) of the American Dental Association (ADA) and accepts four residents each year. Residents who successfully complete the program receive a certificate.

About Our Dental Residency Program

The GPR Program is designed to strengthen diagnostic skills, clinical judgment and hands-on experience across a broad range of dental care.

Residents work closely with attending dentists, dental faculty and physicians. During hospital rotations, residents collaborate with emergency medicine providers and assist with surgical cases. This team-based approach provides valuable experience in managing dental and facial emergencies, oral surgery procedures and trauma care.

A strong emphasis is placed on:

  • Treating people with complex medical and oral health needs
  • Treating individuals with special health care needs
  • Understanding medical considerations related to dental care
  • Delivering dentistry safely in a hospital environment
  • Working effectively with interdisciplinary health care teams

Program Goals

Graduates of the GPR Program are prepared to:

  • Act as a primary care provider for individuals and groups of patients. This includes providing emergency and multidisciplinary comprehensive oral health care, providing patient-focused care coordinated by the general practitioner, directing health-promotion and disease-prevention activities.
  • Plan and provide multidisciplinary oral health care for a wide variety of patients, including those with special needs.
  • Manage oral health care by using patient and practice management and quality improvement methods that adapt to changes in health care.
  • Function effectively within the hospital and other health care environments, as well as within interdisciplinary health care teams.
  • Apply scientific principles to learning and oral health care. This includes using critical thinking, evidence- or outcome-based clinical decision making, and technology-based information retrieval systems.
  • Utilize the values of professional ethics, life-long learning, patient-centered care, adaptability and acceptance of cultural diversity in professional practice.
  • Understand the oral health needs of communities and engage in community service.

Clinical and Hospital Experiences

Under the supervision of attending dentists, residents complete clinical experience at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center. The rotation includes one and a half weeks in internal medicine and two weeks in anesthesia, combining didactic instruction with hands-on clinical experience.

Off-Service Rotations

Anesthesia rotation

Residents gain in-depth learning experience of general anesthesia and acquire hands-on skills.

Residents will learn about:

  • Preoperative evaluation and patient monitoring
  • Airway management and venipuncture
  • Use of anesthetic medications
  • Recognition and management of anesthetic complications
  • Assessment of patient recovery following anesthesia and behavioral and pharmacologic techniques

Internal medicine rotation

Residents in this rotation have in-depth learning experiences of internal medicine and how it relates to dental medicine in a hospital-based setting.

Residents learn to:

  • Perform patient histories and physical examinations
  • Interpret laboratory and diagnostic findings
  • Understand medical, social and behavioral health factors
  • Coordinate care with physicians and other health care professionals

Loading component...

Loading component...