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Implementation of Community-Based Dental Education: A Tale of Three Schools

Thursday, 27th August 2026 - 16:00 to 17:30
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Timezone: 

Budapest (UTC+1 winter / UTC+2 summer)

Duration: 

90 Minute

Venue: 

HALL A

Session type: 
Type 1: Organised, planned and delivered by the ADEE
Session synopsis: 
Dental schools have traditionally incorporated short-term community-based experiences alongside school-based clinics to enrich dental students’ clinical training. These community placements can range from a single day to an entire year, each providing valuable real-world exposure.

Recently, a group of new dental schools - one each in the US, UK, and Ireland has pioneered academic programs that are entirely focused on delivering patient care in community-based clinics. This innovative approach shifts the primary learning environment from the academic clinic to the community setting, representing a significant evolution in dental education.

This session will explore the community-based clinical models established by these three schools, outlining the processes involved in launching and sustaining such programs. Attendees will gain insight into the unique logistical, educational, and operational challenges encountered by these institutions and the strategies they employed to address them. The session will conclude with actionable guidance for other schools interested in adopting or expanding similar community-engaged clinical programs, offering practical steps to implementation and success.

Speakers: 

Albert Leung

Professor of Dental Education and Head of Continuing Professional Development
School of Dentistry, RCSI Dental Education Centre

Professor Leung is Foundation Head of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) School of Dentistry. With the support of the Irish Government, he launched the Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) programme for RCSI in 2025, the first new undergraduate dentistry programme in Ireland for over a century.

He qualified in dentistry at Dundee University (BDS), holds an LLM from Cardiff University, an MA from King’s College London, and a PhD from Portsmouth University. He is a Fellow in General Dental Surgery of RCSI, a Fellow in Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, a Fellow in Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, a Fellow of the College of General Dentistry, and a Fellow of the International College of Dentists.

Professor Leung publishes widely in dental education and restorative dental practice. He has an extensive successful international leadership portfolio across three continents. He was formerly Professor of Dental Education, Head of Continuing Professional Development, and Director of the Restorative Dental Practice Programme at UCL Eastman Dental Institute, successfully supervised over 100 Master’s dissertations.

Professor Leung served as Dean of the RCSI Faculty of Dentistry from 2020 to 2023. He guided the Faculty through critical timely innovations and initiatives, which facilitated global remote deliveries of Continuing Professional Development programmes, and uninterrupted novel, International postgraduate dentistry examinations during and following the pandemic.

He is a longstanding Academic Lead and Chief Examiner for the General Dental Council Overseas Registration Examination (ORE), and Chairs the ORE2 Board. He has achieved international distinction, including receipt of the ADEE Mature Career Dental Educator Award in 2017.

Ewen McColl

Professor of Clinical Dentistry, Head of Peninsula Dental School
University of Plymouth

I qualified Bachelor of Dental Surgery from the University of Edinburgh in 1993 and on graduation was awarded the Dr Baron Ver Heyden de Lancey Memorial Award for most consistent all round graduate. Following House Officer and Senior House Officer positions in Maxillofacial Surgery, I joined the British Army as a Dental Officer in 1995. During my military career, I served as Senior Dental Officer in Afghanistan and for two years on Loan Service to The Sultan of Brunei’s Armed Forces.

After six years of General Dental Practice experience in the military, I undertook three years of Specialist Training in Periodontology at The Eastman Dental Hospital in London, passing MClinDent with distinction. Following this, I completed three years of training at Guy’s Dental Hospital in order to become an accredited Restorative Consultant. During this period, I also attended an externship in endodontics at Loma Linda University in California.

Following accreditation as a Restorative Consultant in 2009, I was then employed as a Consultant by the military, taking restorative referrals from military General Dental Practitioners. I am a GDC registered specialist in Restorative Dentistry, Periodontics, and Endodontics.   My major interests are in implant dentistry, and all aspects of surgical and non-surgical periodontal therapy.

I am an Editor of the Faculty of General Dental Practitioners(now CGDent)  Standards in Dentistry and a Director of Peninsula Dental Social Enterprise. I am the current chair of Dental Schools Council, and Editorial Director of Dental Update.

Fotinos Panagakos

Founding Dean of the School of Dental Medicine
Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences in Yakima, WA

Dr. Panagakos received his DMD from UMDNJ-New Jersey Dental School (now Rutgers University School of Dental Medicine) and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from UMDNJ-Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (now the Rutgers University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences) in 1992. He received his Master’s in Education from Seton Hall University in 1999 and his Master’s in Business Administration from Lehigh University in 2007.

Dr. Panagakos was a full-time faculty member at New Jersey Dental School for 13 years, holding several administrative positions, including Group Practice Administrator, Director of Environmental Safety, and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. He also maintained a private dental practice in Westfield and Newark, NJ during this time.

In June 2005, He joined the Colgate Palmolive Oral Care Clinical Research Department as an Associate Director. He worked at Colgate until September 2017 as the Global Director of Scientific Affairs.

In August 2018, Dr. Panagakos joined the West Virginia University School of Dentistry as the Associate Dean for Research, where he led the institution’s research efforts. He served as interim dean from July 2020 until May 2021.

Since May 2022, Dr. Panagakos has been the Founding Dean of the School of Dental Medicine at Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences in Yakima, WA.

Learning Outcomes: 
  • Describe the essential steps and considerations in establishing a community-based dental education program.
  • Understand practical and policy challenges encountered during the development and implementation of community-based dental education program and approaches to mitigate these challenges in different jurisdictions.
  • Identify effective strategies for building and sustaining partnerships with community organizations and stakeholders in training dental students.