Hands-on OMFS externship

[OpenReduction]

Hello! I am a third year dental student looking for hands on externship opportunities. I know that many programs have shifted to hands off since covid started, but I know there are some still out there. Any input would be much appreciated. Thank you!

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[TSYK]

Nyu, parkland were two where I got to extract some teeth during covid times…

 

[surfline]

NYU.

Go during summer when there aren’t any students around and you’ll run your own clinic chair and get to do a ton of stuff.

 

[dent2018istry]

I loved my Baylor externship experience and I’ve heard a lot of other people say the same

 

[lOuDMoUTH]

Parkland, Shreveport, & UNMC had a hands on experiences

 

[providence819]

UAB keeps you busy

 

[Arthur Jeffries]

Montefiore allows hands-on if you're at a dental school in the area, you have to reach out to their program coordinator though for more specifics (i.e. which schools and what procedures hands-on would involve)

 

[OpenReduction]

Thanks for the input guys! I also heard that cook county is hands on. Can anyone confirm?

 

[odontoblaster90210]

Thanks for the input guys! I also heard that cook county is hands on. Can anyone confirm?

It is hands on, yes.

 

[Life of Pablo]

Was able to drain some abscesses and suture some lacs at Baylor.

 

[iluvnetters]

An attending at my home program always told me going to an externship purely bc its hands on is sort of silly. Sure, if you're interested in this program, go for it. But you get a good grasp on how to do most things your intern year anyways, so justifying an externship because you'll get to pull 25 teeth and close a neck just doesn't make sense. After going on my externships, I definitely agree with this. Go to the program you want to learn most about. Some were more hands on than others, but most importantly I learned of some programs that I really really wanted to now apply to and could see myself at, and others that I might not even apply to now.

 

[surfline]

An attending at my home program always told me going to an externship purely bc its hands on is sort of silly. Sure, if you're interested in this program, go for it. But you get a good grasp on how to do most things your intern year anyways, so justifying an externship because you'll get to pull 25 teeth and close a neck just doesn't make sense. After going on my externships, I definitely agree with this. Go to the program you want to learn most about. Some were more hands on than others, but most importantly I learned of some programs that I really really wanted to now apply to and could see myself at, and others that I might not even apply to now.

At least your first externship should be hands on. Imagine if your top program asks you to take out a tooth or hand tie and you’re clueless.

 

[iluvnetters]

At least your first externship should be hands on. Imagine if your top program asks you to take out a tooth or hand tie and you’re clueless.

Our program lets their own students be pretty hands on so I never really though about that, so thats pretty fair for students at schools without an OMFS program or those without much experience in the OR.

 

[surfline]

Our program lets their own students be pretty hands on so I never really though about that, so thats pretty fair for students at schools without an OMFS program or those without much experience in the OR.

I’ve seen externs come to my schools home program and scrub in for the very first time. Yikes.

 

[Peon.]

Nova is very hands on. Drained abscesses, reduced nasal bones, scrubbed into cases during my externship.

 

[HockeyDocOMFS]

At least your first externship should be hands on. Imagine if your top program asks you to take out a tooth or hand tie and you’re clueless.

Disagree completely. We’re dental students… programs know we’re not trained to do anything in the hospital. When I scrubbed in for the first time at an externship (at the program I actually ended up matching into, which was also my top program), the attending walked me through it. I also laid my first flap there with the interns and sutured for the very first time.

Residents and attendings don’t care if you don’t know how to do any of this since we all experience different levels of training at dental school.

You should extern at programs you want to match into to learn more about the culture and environment. Nothing more.

 

[surfline]

Disagree completely. We’re dental students… programs know we’re not trained to do anything in the hospital. When I scrubbed in for the first time at an externship (at the program I actually ended up matching into, which was also my top program), the attending walked me through it. I also laid my first flap there with the interns and sutured for the very first time.

Residents and attendings don’t care if you don’t know how to do any of this since we all experience different levels of training at dental school.

You should extern at programs you want to match into to learn more about the culture and environment. Nothing more.

I am sure it's program-dependent, but some attendings may not want to teach every dental student how to scrub in. Why have you never scrubbed in at your home program? Why have you never sutured? It may be interpreted poorly and I wouldn't risk doing an externship at your top program first.

 

[iluvnetters]

I am sure it's program-dependent, but some attendings may not want to teach every dental student how to scrub in. Why have you never scrubbed in at your home program? Why have you never sutured? It may be interpreted poorly and I wouldn't risk doing an externship at your top program first.

Some places just don't have the opportunity for students to come into the OR even if they show interest. I've talked to some people externing through my home program and they'll say that their school forbids dental students from going anywhere close to an OR. Definitely fortunate to come from a program where they make it a goal to teach us how to suture, hold instruments the right way, hand tie, scrub, etc., but not everybody has that. I've been told by attendings on externships that its very rare for an extern to come through and know how to hand tie, palm instruments, suture, etc. I would agree to not do an externship at your top program first even if you have done lots in the OR, but not for reasons such as having low surgical competency.

I would say, however, that before externing everybody should have atleast watched a video on how to hand tie, scrub, and suture.

 

[HockeyDocOMFS]

I am sure it's program-dependent, but some attendings may not want to teach every dental student how to scrub in. Why have you never scrubbed in at your home program? Why have you never sutured? It may be interpreted poorly and I wouldn't risk doing an externship at your top program first.

Well, I had never scrubbed in because my home program was very strict with the COVID policy, and I had never sutured before because I took your "advice" and unintentionally had my first externship be a hands-on one at the start of my clinical D3 year. If anything, I suggest people to extern at an observation-only externship at first so they can get a feel for the hospital life.

Additionally, dude, the attendings are in academia -- they LOVE to teach. And if they don't want to teach a student how to scrub, then they will tell their resident to. And if the residents have a problem teaching a clueless dental student the absolute basics on how to scrub in, then that really isn't a program I want to train at (unless they were in a time crunch or something, of course).

At least your first externship should be hands on. Imagine if your top program asks you to take out a tooth or hand tie and you’re clueless.

I wouldn't risk doing an externship at your top program first.

The argument is hands-on as your first externship, not top program first. I agree with you that you should save your top program for closer to the application cycle and not your very first one. I was rebutting your statement on the hands-on one being first, when I actually think an observation-only externship might be better as the very first. Regardless, it really doesn't matter. Just show up on time, be willing to learn, and act interested in everything while on the minimal sleep you will have that week.

 

[surfline]

Well, I had never scrubbed in because my home program was very strict with the COVID policy, and I had never sutured before because I took your "advice" and unintentionally had my first externship be a hands-on one at the start of my clinical D3 year. If anything, I suggest people to extern at an observation-only externship at first so they can get a feel for the hospital life.

Additionally, dude, the attendings are in academia -- they LOVE to teach. And if they don't want to teach a student how to scrub, then they will tell their resident to. And if the residents have a problem teaching a clueless dental student the absolute basics on how to scrub in, then that really isn't a program I want to train at (unless they were in a time crunch or something, of course).




The argument is hands-on as your first externship, not top program first. I agree with you that you should save your top program for closer to the application cycle and not your very first one. I was rebutting your statement on the hands-on one being first, when I actually think an observation-only externship might be better as the very first. Regardless, it really doesn't matter. Just show up on time, be willing to learn, and act interested in everything while on the minimal sleep you will have that week.

Oh, I would never argue with someone with a custom made SDN profile picture

 

[LSUOMFS]

LSU New Orleans OMFS Externship opportunity

LSU OMFS is now inviting pre-doctoral students to join us for a hands on experience! The Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department offers 1, 2, 3, and 4 week externships at University Medical Center, New Orleans to expose dental students to the full scope of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. Externs will have the opportunity to take facial trauma call at one of the busiest trauma centers in the southeast, extract teeth on a diverse patient population, join us in the operating room on a vast array of cases including trauma, orthognathic, TMJ, benign and malignant pathology, and free flap reconstruction.

For more information, check out our website: School of Dentistry - LSU Health New Orleans

For questions, please reach out to,
Jessica Helgeson, MBA, Residency Coordinator

LSUHSC Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
1100 Florida Ave., Box 220
New Orleans, LA 70119
E-Mail: [email protected]