The Special Care Dentistry Faculty member is responsible for facilitating the ECU School of Dental Medicine’s commitment to providing care for patients with special needs and to preparing students and residents to care for such patients in their future practices. The Special Care Faculty Member oversees the operation of the Special Care Clinic in the School of Dental Medicine’s Ross Hall, coordinating and providing patient care in that location, while also maintaining a regular Operating Room Schedule at Vidant Medical Center and its affiliated Surgi-Center for patients requiring special dental care services under deep sedation or general anesthesia. The Special Care Dentistry Faculty reports directly to the Chair of the Department of General Dentistry and works closely with the Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs and other administrators.
Specific duties include:
- Providing care to patients with special needs in the outpatient and hospital setting in a manner that is appropriate for the patient’s age and clinical condition, while educating students and residents in the treatment of special needs patients.
- Providing and coordinating care in SoDM clinics while educating students and residents in the treatment of a wide range of patients with special needs, including those with:
- Learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities and/or developmental delay
- Mental health diagnoses
- Dental phobias
- Complex medical conditions
- Physical disabilities, including individuals who must be transported by gurney or wheelchair and who may not be able to transfer to a dental chair
- Individuals who are morbidly obese
- Demonstrating knowledge and skills necessary to meet the patient’s physical, psychosocial, educational and safety needs
- Collaboration with specialty and general dentistry faculty in providing care to patients with special needs
- Effective communication with all stakeholders, including referring colleagues, medical clinics, group homes, nursing homes, and special care institutions and organizations
- Promoting Special Care Dentistry by forging links with other professional colleagues as well as external organizations such as learning disabilities teams, patient care coordinators, hospital consultants and other health care providers
- Actively engage in community outreach and service activities on a regular basis, with particular emphasis on working with special care populations
- Planning for the future expansion of educational research and care for patients with special needs within the School of Dental Medicine
- Conducting basic or clinical research, and/or other scholarly activities, that will qualify for appropriate promotion
- Commitment to the Mission and Vision of the School of Dental Medicine, including both a community- based and a generalist model of dental education
- Additional duties as assigned by the Director of Pre-Doctoral Clinical Education, Chair of General Dentistry, or the Dean of the School of Dental Medicine
Employment in this position provides eligibility to participate in the UNC Optional Retirement Program (ORP) which offers matching employer contributions and employee control of investment choices, along with eligibility to participate in various Voluntary Supplemental Retirement Plans (401k, 403b, 457). This position is not eligible to participate in the NC Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement System (TSERS). Additionally, this position offers multiple voluntary options for Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance as well as various supplemental plans including Critical Illness, Flexible Spending Accounts, Cancer, and Disability.
While this position is not automatically eligible for the NC Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement System (TSERS), new hires transferring from another North Carolina state agency and current ECU employees transferring internally who had been enrolled in TSERS in their previous employment will continue participation in TSERS. These individuals may be able to elect to participate in ORP if they had not been offered that option at the time of their initial enrollment into TSERS.
Contingent upon the availability of funds.
