Educational Collaborations

University of Minnesota

For many years, Apple Tree has participated in the "Miniresidency in Nursing Home Care," a course that teaches dentists, dental hygienists, and dental assistants how to deliver care more effectively in nursing homes and other long-term care environments. Practitioners from 28 states and Canada have now attended this course since its first offering in 1991. The Mini-residency was developed and is directed by faculty from the University of Minnesota's Oral Health Services for Older Adults Program, winner of the 1995 American Dental Association Geriatric Oral Health Care Award. For more information, please visit www.dentalce.umn.edu/.

Normandale Community College

In order to create more dental access options for patients, Apple Tree's Dr. Jayne Cernohous, Dr. Colleen Brickle, Program Chair of Dental Hygiene at Normandale Community College, and Lynette Engeswick, Chair of Dental Hygiene at Minnesota State University at Mankato collaborated on a Clinical Dental Education Innovation Project. Funded by the Minnesota Department of Health, the project is called "Expanded Functions through Teledentistry." This project included a survey of dental hygienists and their interest in community dentistry, a new course offering that featured teledentistry training, and new exposure of dental hygienists to special needs patients. Teledentistry examinations were piloted at two elementary schools, and a forum on new "collaborative agreement" legislation informed hygienists how to take advantage of recent legislation authorizing hygienists to take on new roles in community dentistry.

South Central College

Apple Tree collaborates with South Central College's Dental Assisting Program in North Mankato, Minn. Students from the college's dental assisting program have an opportunity to come to our Madelia clinic to do a chairside rotation, which provides the students a real-life experience working at a busy community dental clinic. Students work closely with the dental team and see first-hand the day-to-day clinical operations, a variety of oral health conditions, experience working with children, adults, seniors, and individuals with disabilities. In addition, the Madelia experience helps create greater understanding through the clinic's work with the local Latino population.

Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MCTC)

Apple Tree is a partner in the Dental Careers Institute Project, a program made possible by a grant from the Minnesota Job Skills Partnership. MCTC, together with Health Partners Dental, Park Dental, and Apple Tree, is creating a education and training plan to meet the needs of urban citizens and immigrants. Particularly, the Dental Careers Institute will create a recruitment plan that targets Spanish, Asian and East African immigrants, and develop a series of continuing education classes in expanded services for dental hygienists and dental assistants, and culturally-focused care for dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, and office personnel. The goal of the project is to recruit more dental professionals who will serve low-income, immigrant, and elderly communities.