The Board has indicated that of course, practitioners are expected to practice safely and in a way that minimises the spread of infection. The Board notes that they will no longer be prescriptive about practice guidelines, and that practitioners should exercise their professional judgement in following guidance and processes that are evidence-based, safe, and appropriate for a particular practice setting. The Board emphasized that if dental practitioners were carrying out infection control under the retired guidelines and where this continues to be up-to date, evidence-based, safe, and appropriate for a given practice setting, that there would be no need for a dental practitioner to change their infection prevention and control processes.

The Board’s self-reflective tool provides the following framework for practitioners:

• reflect on your practice and consider the questions and statements in the document
• make notes against the question or statement (where applicable)
• identify gaps in your knowledge, skills, systems, and protocols
• make an improvement plan

The self-reflective tool covers a wide range of components of infection prevention and control, including considerations around single-use medical devices, aseptic technique, management of sharp injuries, waste management, practitioner immunisation, and continuing professional development.

As we know, the ramifications of poor infection prevention and control can include the transmission of serious disease from procedures such as all-on-4 dental implants, crowns, or fillings. The Board has encouraged dental practitioners to seek advice from government health departments, statutory entities, professional associations, insurers, or private consultants to ensure access to advice specific to a particular professional setting.

The post Infection Prevention and Control for Dental Practitioners appeared first on My Health Career.

Undergraduate pathway and entry into dentistry

Following is a guide to the ATAR scores for entry into every dentistry course in Australia in 2022:

Please note that apart from your ATAR, entry requirements for undergraduate dentistry may also include:

• a UCAT score
• an interview
• a predicted ATAR form
• a manual dexterity & spatial awareness test
• eyesight requirements
• an online application
• completion of a questionnaire
• a police check
• a working with children check
• pre-requisite subjects
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course
• health checks and immunisations

Six of the nine universities will take undergraduate students directly into their dentistry courses. Three of the universities (Sydney, Melbourne and Western Australia) have pathway programs into their postgraduate dentistry courses for high achieving Year 12 students. These places are highly competitive and generally require an ATAR of at least 99.00, and, in some cases an interview, a UCAT score and other admission requirements. Please check with each university for specific or alternative pathways if you are from an Indigenous or rural background.

It is also worth noting that some universities will accept applicants who hold a full or partial Bachelor’s degree. Please check with the universities you are looking at applying to for their complete entry requirements as this varies widely across the 9 universities.

Some universities don’t publish the full requirements for entry into their dentistry course in the course or university handbook section on their website. You may need to click on hyperlinks that will take you to further information in PDF documents, check their FAQs page, or contact the university directly.

Graduate pathway and entry into dentistry

The University of Sydney and the University of Western Australia offer a 4-year Doctor of Dental Medicine, and the University of Melbourne a 4 year Doctor of Dental Surgery as a postgraduate degree. Before applying for one of these courses, you would need to make sure you have completed the appropriate subjects in your undergraduate degree. Entry requirements may also include a high GAMSAT score, a high-Grade Point Average (GPA) in your undergraduate degree and an interview as well as other criteria. Please check with each university for specific or alternative pathways if you are from an Indigenous or rural background.

Following is a table which shows postgraduate qualifications which lead to registration as a dentist in Australia:

Please note that apart from your GPA and GAMSAT score, graduate entry requirements for dentistry may also include:

• an interview
• a manual dexterity & spatial awareness test
• eyesight requirements
• a written application
• completion of a questionnaire
• a police check
• a working with children check
• pre-requisite subjects
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course
• health checks and immunisations

Pathways to becoming a dentist

Following is an infographic which summarizes the above pathways to becoming a dentist. For simplicity, it does not include the possibility of transferring into dentistry from another course. Click here for more information on our become a dentist page.

Current list of approved programs of study to become a dentist

The information presented in this article was correct at the time of publishing. Please check with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for an up to date list of approved programs of study to become a dentist in Australia.

If you would like to find courses to become a general dentist:
1. Go to https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Accreditation/Approved-Programs-of-Study.aspx
2. In Profession select Dental Practitioner
3. In Country make the appropriate selection – for example, Australia
4. In Qualification Type select General
5. In Division select Dentist
6. Click Search

More resources on My Health Career

• The best and worst parts of a career in dentistry
• Videos about a career in dentistry
• Orthodontics – an evolving profession
• What is it that dentists love about their career? We hear from Dr Frank Farrelly and Dr Philippa Sawyer
• Mindfulness in dental practice: Q&A with Dr Sonia Sonia

Disclaimer

This information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal circumstances. My Health Career accepts no responsibility for ensuring that you enrol in a course that is right for you. Please do your own research to ensure that you enrol in the correct course, especially if you are considering an undergraduate biomedicine, health science or biomedical science degree as a pathway to a postgraduate course. This may include speaking with a careers advisor, guidance officer, career development practitioner, representatives of the Australian Dental Association, and admissions officers from the university or universities you are looking at applying to.

The post ATAR for dentistry – Your guide to the ATAR for every dentistry course in Australia in 2022 appeared first on My Health Career.

Pre-budget submission

The ADA’s pre-budget submission was released in January 2022. The background information highlighted groups identified as most in need in the National Oral Health Plan 2015-24, these including:

• Those who are socially disadvantaged or on now incomes
• First Nations Australians
• Those living in regional and remote areas
• Those with additional and specialised health care needs

Regarding older Australians the submission stated that oral health has been neglected for many years as a result of decreased accessibility and poor affordability, and referred to long waiting lists for public dental services. It cited:

• The Aged Care Quality Standards Recommendation Point 19 from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, stating that Aged Care Quality Standards are reviewed urgently with a commitment to best practice oral health care being an amendment by 31st December 2022
• The Better Access to Health Care Recommendation Point 60, to establish a seniors dental benefits scheme by 1 January 2023
• The Aged Care Workforce Recommendation Point 79, for a review of certificate courses in aged care to include oral health as a core competency for aged care facility staff

The proposed budget for Aged Care Oral Health was $1.3 Billion per year for a Senior Dental Benefits Scheme for those who receive the aged care pension, and $13.9 million per year for registered dental practitioners to become integral members of aged care teams.

Regarding rural and remote Australians, the submission stated that smoking, drinking, reduced access to fluoridated water, social determinants of health, health literacy are compounded by a shortage of a skilled dental workforce. These factors combined lead to poorer oral health outcomes than in metropolitan areas. Recommendations included:

• Direct improvements to patient-centred oral health services such as increased funding to teledentistry ($2.1 million p.a), support for the development of the Indigenous oral health workforce ($5 million over 5 years for 100 students), and better utilisation of the Child Dental Benefits Scheme ($1 Million media campaign)
• Those for dental and oral health practitioners and specialists for equipment in rural communities, public access to tertiary dental specialist outreach services, CPD courses in regional areas, career incentives for long-term employment of dental practitioners in regional, rural and remote locations, and private health fund benefits for teledentistry
• For dental and oral health students and new graduates, continuing to target an allocation of students from First Nations and regional backgrounds, including dentistry in the “bonded” HECS Reimbursement Scheme, training of students and allowances for transport, accommodation and living expenses for students on rural health placements ($1 million over 5 years)

A national public waiting list for dental services was also proposed at a cost of $89.58 million p.a., as were health promotion initiatives including front-of-pack labelling on all packed food and drink products containing added sugars and the continuation of subsidising TGA-approved smoking cessation products.

Post-budget opinion

The ADA considered that the March 2022 federal budget placed no importance on the nation’s oral health.

ADA CEO Damian Mitsch said “This is a very disappointing outcome when we know that thousands of people have to wait years to get a dental appointment in the public system.

“Also, there are large numbers of Australians including those in residential aged care, those on Level 4 Homecare Packages, those from socially and economically challenged backgrounds and Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander populations for whom dental care is unaffordable.

“The ADA has put to successive governments and to the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety our plan to fix the inequity in oral care between those who can afford their own dental care and those who have to wait years in the public system.

“If the government adopted the Seniors Dental Benefits Schedule, it would mean funding dental care for older Australians as well as some fundamental systems finally being put into place to ensure better dental care for residential and home care residents,” said Damian Mitsch.

While National Partnership Agreements were once again extended in the Budget to ensure public dental services for another year or two, the ADA saw this as a Band-Aid measure for a broken system.

Pre-federal election

In the lead up to the federal election, ADA President Dr Mark Hutton requested that members lobby the major political parties to ensure that dentistry was a critical part of the election conversation.

Issues raised in the lead up to the election were:

• The Child Dental Benefits Schedule, which was only being used by 38% of eligible families
• Establishing a Dental Benefits Scheme that provides older Australians with a capped entitlement to subsidised oral health services to address immediate needs
• Ensuring all over 75s, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders over 55 and residents of aged care facilities get a mandatory and reportable oral health assessment
• Overhauling the Aged Care Quality Standards so providers must meet oral care standards, as urged by the Aged Care Commission
• Implementation of core oral health study units in the Cert III Aged Care Courses to ensure staff are equipped to meet oral hygiene needs of residents

During the week leading up to the federal election, the ADA congratulated the Greens for including oral health on their shortlist of issues should they have held the balance of power following the election. The ADA noted the Greens costing of adopting dental into Medicare as $77bn over a decade, starting with a spend of $7.5bn from July 2023 and a further $7.5bn the following financial year.

ADA Deputy CEO Eithne Irving stated “With so many pressures on the public purse, no government has ever prioritised this. Yet the knock-on effect of untreated oral health issues to other parts of the health system including urgent dental problems presenting at emergency departments is huge.

“For example around ten in every 1000 children hospitalised is due to a dental condition. The hidden cost to Medicare from patients seeking care from their GP likewise, has been estimated to be up to $300 million per year.

“The ADA’s plan to start smaller within residential aged care and incrementally fix the broken oral healthcare system there is far more acceptable and will save money in the health system in the long term but more importantly, improve the health and well-being of one of our most vulnerable populations.”

Post-federal election

Following the May 2022 federal election, ADA President Dr Mark Hutton congratulated the Labor government and stated that he was looking forward to its new Cabinet delivering on the undertaking to work with the ADA.

The ADA revealed that in a letter before polling day, Labor promised that it would work with the ADA to improve training for aged care workers, ensuring that an oral health component was included.

Dr Hutton said, “Labor has said it understands the importance of oral health to elderly Australians and acknowledges the relevant recommendation of the Aged Care Royal Commission’s Final Report.

“Further, they wrote to us saying that an Albanese Labor Government would engage with relevant stakeholders, including the ADA, to address issues with aged care vocational and university education programs, the Aged Care Quality Standards and other regulations relating to oral health needs in residential aged care.

“This is great news and will go a long way to fixing some of the biggest issues facing the 190,000 residents of aged care facilities around Australia, many whose oral health issues are not being met as often as they should be, or not at all.”

Dr Hutton added: “Within the next few weeks, the ADA will be contacting all relevant members of parliament to ask for their support in pushing for these and other advocacy issues which will improve the oral health of older Australians – primarily to back a Seniors Dental Benefits Schedule to fund dental care delivered by private and public dental services to older Australians who need it most.”

The post Dentistry 2022: The Profession’s Approach to the Budget and Federal Election appeared first on My Health Career.

Building a career in a field in health and medicine

 Making the decision to build a career in dentistry is definitely an interesting choice. This is a career path that requires you to be willing and able to constantly focus on prioritising the health and well-being of others throughout your everyday life. Today, it is important for you to pay attention to many pieces of advice, all of which are important and valuable in and of themselves and which have their own role to play in how your career continues to evolve, function, flourish, and thrive. Like never before, building a career in a field in health and medicine like dentistry is resulting in more interest and investment in the fields in general.

The importance of integrity and quality in your dental health career

 Being a dental health professional definitely requires a lot of active attention to detail and overall emphasis. However, the most important aspect of your job and the most important point of continuous evolutionary improvement, is the importance of integrity and quality in your career. It is important to have high quality services and Integrity in your everyday work so you can ensure that you are constantly working on focusing on giving your clients the best possible work while making them want to return to you as their dental professional on an active and ongoing basis. It has happened before that dentists have lost clients due to their refusal to focus on high quality services. This must be at the forefront of your mind and your work always.

Why this must always be the core of your professional goals

 Of course, sometimes there are particular services that require more attention to detail than others. Examples like veneers speak volumes of the fact that sometimes a simple check up is obviously going to be different to a specialist procedure or process. And regardless of which approach you are taking to any client, having integrity and quality in your dental health career must always be the core goal of your professionalism and your consistent Innovation your career space. Ultimately, this is arguably the most important foundation to your longevity and success in this ever evolving field.

The post The Importance Of Integrity And Quality In Your Dental Health Career appeared first on My Health Career.

Undergraduate entry into dentistry

Following is a guide to the ATAR scores for entry into every dentistry course in Australia in 2021:

Please note that apart from your ATAR, entry requirements for undergraduate dentistry may also include:

• a UCAT score
• an interview
• a predicted ATAR form
• a manual dexterity & spatial awareness test
• eyesight requirements
• a written application
• completion of a questionnaire
• a police check
• a working with children check
• pre-requisite subjects
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course
• health checks and immunisations

Six of the nine universities will take undergraduate students directly into their dentistry courses. Three of the universities (Sydney, Melbourne and Western Australia) have pathway programs into their postgraduate dentistry courses for high achieving year 12 students. These places are highly competitive and generally require an ATAR of at least 99.00, and, in some cases an interview, a UCAT score and other admission requirements. Please check with each university for specific or alternative pathways if you are from an Indigenous or rural background.

It is also worth noting that some universities will accept applicants who hold a full or partial Bachelor’s degree. Some universities also have different entry requirements for students from a rural or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background. Please check with the universities you are looking at applying to for their complete entry requirements as this varies widely across the 9 universities.

Some universities don’t publish the full requirements for entry into their dentistry course in the course or university handbook section on their website. You may need to click on hyperlinks that will take you to further information in PDF documents, check their FAQs page, or contact the university directly.

Graduate entry into dentistry

The University of Sydney and the University of Western Australia offer a 4-year Doctor of Dental Medicine, and the University of Melbourne a 4 year Doctor of Dental Surgery as a postgraduate degree. Before applying for one of these courses, you would need to make sure you have completed the appropriate subjects in your undergraduate degree. Entry requirements may also include a high GAMSAT score, a high-Grade Point Average (GPA) in your undergraduate degree and an interview as well as other criteria. Please check with each university for specific or alternative pathways if you are from an Indigenous or rural background.

Following is a table which shows postgraduate qualifications which lead to registration as a dentist in Australia:

Please note that apart from your GPA and GAMSAT score, graduate entry requirements for dentistry may also include:

• an interview
• a manual dexterity & spatial awareness test
• eyesight requirements
• a written application
• completion of a questionnaire
• a police check
• a working with children check
• pre-requisite subjects
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course
• health checks and immunisations

Pathways to becoming a dentist

Following is an infographic which summarizes the above pathways to becoming a dentist. For simplicity, it does not include the possibility of transferring into dentistry from another course. Click here for more information on our become a dentist page.

Current list of approved programs of study to become a dentist

The information presented in this article was correct at the time of publishing. Please check with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for an up to date list of approved programs of study to become a dentist in Australia.

If you would like to find courses to become a general dentist:

1. Go to https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Accreditation/Approved-Programs-of-Study.aspx
2. In Profession select Dental Practitioner
3. In Country make the appropriate selection – for example, Australia
4. In Qualification Type select General
5. In Division select Dentist
6. Click Search

More resources on My Health Career

• The best and worst parts of a career in dentistry
• Videos about a career in dentistry
• Orthodontics – an evolving profession
• What is it that dentists love about their career? We hear from Dr Frank Farrelly and Dr Philippa Sawyer
• Mindfulness in dental practice: Q&A with Dr Sonia Sonia

Disclaimer

This information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal circumstances. My Health Career accepts no responsibility for ensuring that you enrol in a course that is right for you. Please do your own research to ensure that you enrol in the correct course, especially if you are considering an undergraduate biomedicine, health science or biomedical science degree as a pathway to a master’s course. This may include speaking with a careers advisor, guidance officer, career development practitioner, representatives of the Australian Dental Association, and admissions officers from the university or universities you are looking at applying to.

The post ATAR for dentistry – your guide to the ATAR for every dentistry course in Australia in 2021 appeared first on My Health Career.

Undergraduate entry into dentistry

Following is a guide to the ATAR scores for entry into every dentistry course in Australia in 2020:

Please note that apart from your ATAR, entry requirements for undergraduate dentistry may also include:

• a UCAT score
• an interview
• a predicted ATAR form
• a manual dexterity & spatial awareness test
• eyesight requirements
• a written application
• completion of a questionnaire
• a police check
• a working with children check
• pre-requisite subjects
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course
• health checks and immunisations

Six of the nine universities will take undergraduate students directly into their dentistry courses. Three of the universities (Sydney, Melbourne and Western Australia) have pathway programs into their postgraduate dentistry courses for high achieving year 12 students. These places are highly competitive and generally require an ATAR of at least 99.00, and, in some cases an interview, a UCAT score and other admission requirements. Please check with each university for specific or alternative pathways if you are from an Indigenous or rural background.

It is also worth noting that some universities will accept applicants who hold a full or partial Bachelor’s degree. Some universities also have different entry requirements for students from a rural or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background. Please check with the universities you are looking at applying to for their complete entry requirements as this varies widely across the 9 universities.

Some universities don’t publish the full requirements for entry into their dentistry course in the course or university handbook section on their website. You may need to click on hyperlinks that will take you to further information in PDF documents, check their FAQs page, or contact the university directly.

Graduate entry into dentistry

The University of Sydney and the University of Western Australia offer a 4-year Doctor of Dental Medicine, and the University of Melbourne a 4 year Doctor of Dental Surgery as a postgraduate degree. Before applying for one of these courses, you would need to make sure you have completed the appropriate subjects in your undergraduate degree. Entry requirements may also include a high GAMSAT score, a high-Grade Point Average (GPA) in your undergraduate degree and an interview as well as other criteria. Please check with each university for specific or alternative pathways if you are from an Indigenous or rural background.

Following is a table which shows postgraduate qualifications which lead to registration as a dentist in Australia:

Please note that apart from your GPA and GAMSAT score, graduate entry requirements for dentistry may also include:

• an interview
• a manual dexterity & spatial awareness test
• eyesight requirements
• a written application
• completion of a questionnaire
• a police check
• a working with children check
• pre-requisite subjects
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course
• health checks and immunisations

Pathways to becoming a dentist

Following is an infographic which summarizes the above pathways to becoming a dentist. For simplicity, it does not include the possibility of transferring into dentistry from another course. Click here for more information on our become a dentist page.

Current list of approved programs of study to become a dentist

The information presented in this article was correct at the time of publishing. Please check with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for an up to date list of approved programs of study to become a dentist in Australia.

If you would like to find courses to become a general dentist:

1. Go to https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Accreditation/Approved-Programs-of-Study.aspx
2. In Profession select Dental Practitioner
3. In Country make the appropriate selection – for example, Australia
4. In Qualification Type select General
5. In Division select Dentist
6. Click Search

More resources on My Health Career

• The best and worst parts of a career in dentistry
• Videos about a career in dentistry
• Orthodontics – an evolving profession
• What is it that dentists love about their career? We hear from Dr Frank Farrelly and Dr Philippa Sawyer
• Mindfulness in dental practice: Q&A with Dr Sonia Sonia

Disclaimer

This information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal circumstances. My Health Career accepts no responsibility for ensuring that you enrol in a course that is right for you. Please do your own research to ensure that you enrol in the correct course, especially if you are considering an undergraduate biomedicine, health science or biomedical science degree as a pathway to a master’s course. This may include speaking with a careers advisor, guidance officer, career development practitioner, representatives of the Australian Dental Association, and admissions officers from the university or universities you are looking at applying to.

The post ATAR for dentistry – your guide to the ATAR for every dentistry course in Australia in 2020 appeared first on My Health Career.

“In healthcare, I love that every day we go to work we are doing our part to make the world a better place. Whatever we do, we impact lives and most of the time it is for the better, even if sometimes we give bad news. It leads to great job satisfaction and sense of purpose and we can all hope that it leads to good karma!”

Dr Frank Farrelly is a general dentist based in Darlinghurst and Surry Hills, Sydney. He provides all aspects of general dentistry, but takes a general interest in Invisalign Orthodontics, having recently completed a postgraduate diploma in Digital Orthodontics.
https://darlinghurstdental.com.au/dr-frank-farrelly-principal-dentist/

“I love the incredible support we give each other in the healthcare industry, working together for a common cause of helping those in need. As a Psychologist, I love being able to help people reach their goals and discover the potential they have to achieve them. People surprise me every day by how much strength they have to overcome life’s obstacles.”

Phillipa Brown is a registered Psychologist who works across various schools and universities in Melbourne. She utilises a range of psychological approaches in her work with clients, developing a positive therapeutic relationship to assist clients with their unique concerns.

More articles in My Health Career:

• On love for fusing artificial intelligence and physiotherapy – A Q&A with Phebe Liston
• Doctors weigh in on what they love most about their careers
• Psychologist Tracey McGrath on what she loves about guiding clients to happiness

The post What do a dentist and a psychologist love about their careers as a health professionals? appeared first on My Health Career.

There are 9 schools of dentistry in Australia. These are in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia. Depending on whether which pathway you take, it takes a minimum of 5 to 7 years to become a dentist.

Undergraduate entry into dentistry

Following is a guide for the ATAR scores for every dentistry course in Australia in 2019:

Please note that apart from your ATAR / OP, entry requirements for undergraduate dentistry may also include:

• a UCAT score
• an interview
• a predicted ATAR form
• a manual dexterity & spatial awareness test
• eyesight requirements
• a written application
• completion of a questionnaire
• a police check
• a working with children check
• pre-requisite subjects
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course
• health checks and immunisations

It is also worth noting that some universities will accept applicants who hold a full or partial Bachelor’s degree. Some universities also have different entry requirements for students from a rural or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background. Please check with the universities you are looking at applying to for their complete entry requirements as this varies widely across the 9 universities.

Six of the nine universities will take undergraduate students directly into their dentistry courses. Three of the universities (Sydney, Melbourne and Western Australia) have pathway programs into their postgraduate dentistry courses for high achieving year 12 students. These places are highly competitive and generally require an ATAR of at least 99.00, and, in some cases an interview, a UCAT score and other admission requirements.

Some universities don’t publish the full requirements for entry into their dentistry course in the course or university handbook section on their website. In such cases, you may need to be prepared to contact the university directly or check their FAQs page.

Graduate entry into dentistry

The University of Sydney and the University of Western Australia offer a 4-year Doctor of Dental Medicine, and the University of Melbourne a 4 year Doctor of Dental Surgery as a postgraduate degree. Before applying for one of these courses, you would need to make sure you have completed the appropriate subjects in your undergraduate degree. Entry requirements may also include a high GAMSAT score, a high-Grade Point Average (GPA) in your undergraduate degree and an interview as well as other criteria.

Following is a table which shows postgraduate qualifications which lead to registration as a dentist in Australia:

Please note that apart from your GPA and GAMSAT score, graduate entry requirements for dentistry may also include:

• an interview
• a manual dexterity & spatial awareness test
• eyesight requirements
• a written application
• completion of a questionnaire
• a police check
• a working with children check
• pre-requisite subjects
• the completion of first aid training before starting the course
• health checks and immunisations

Following is an infographic which summarizes the above pathways to becoming a dentist. For simplicity, it does not include the possibility of transferring into dentistry from another course. Click here for more information on our become a dentist page.

The information presented in this article was correct at the time of publishing. Please check with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for an up to date list of approved programs of study to become a dentist in Australia https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Education/Approved-Programs-of-Study.aspx?ns=1. The courses which lead to a qualification as a dentist have division “dentist” and qualification type “general” with a profession “dental practitioner” according to the listing on AHPRA.

Disclaimer: This information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal circumstances.

My Health Career accepts no responsibility for ensuring that you enrol in a course that is right for you. Please do your own research to ensure that you enrol in the correct course, especially if you are considering an undergraduate biomedicine, health science or biomedical science degree as a pathway to a master’s course. This may include speaking with a careers advisor, guidance officer, career development practitioner, representatives of the Australian Dental Association, and admissions officers from the university or universities you are looking at applying to.

More resources on My Health Career:

• The best and worst parts of a career in dentistry
• Videos about a career in dentistry
• Orthodontics – an evolving profession
• What is it that dentists love about their career? We hear from Dr Frank Farrelly and Dr Philippa Sawyer
• Mindfulness in dental practice: Q&A with Dr Sonia Sonia

The post ATAR for dentistry – your guide to the ATAR for every dentistry course in Australia in 2019 appeared first on My Health Career.

1. Understanding what you already bring to the table

Considering the 4 key blueprint principles are the perfect approach to getting underway, as they will encourage you to look at your starting point.

Firstly, the principle of value. In what ways do you add value to the organisation you are currently working in? If you really look, could you tease out a greater appreciation for what competencies you already have at your disposal? Is your greatest value in being efficient, do you have excellent communication skills, or are there additional proficiencies you have picked up along the way?

Secondly, the principle of building. What opportunities can you identify that will assist you in building on the skills you have to set the bar even higher?

Thirdly, the principle of progress. In the time that you have been in your profession, what has changed? How has progress taken place? How do you see yourself as part of the future progress in health care, potentially even at the cutting edge?

Fourthly, the principle of impact. How have you leveraged your skills in your current role, and where have you had the greatest impact? Have you improved the delivery of services, increased profits, been the catalyst for building a more cohesive team within your organisation, or had a significant impact outside your organisation?

2. Identifying your stream

The blueprint has identified 5 core work streams that health professionals may engage in when they are looking at the overall direction in which they would like to take in terms of career development. These are practice, education, research, management and strategy.

Practice involves being a clinician delivering patient care directly.

Education could take a number of forms ranging from providing instruction and education to patients and communities to health practitioners and students in clinical or academic environments.

Research could be at the level of systematic investigation to increase knowledge and establish an evidence base, or could be via translating research into practice.

Management could be in diverse ways such as leading and managing departments, service delivery, human resources or project funding.

Strategy might include leading change, developing and leading policy, implementing innovations, or transforming processes for an industry, sector or organisation.

3. Defining your future growth

The 4 levels of growth defined in the blueprint are gaining experience, further skills and knowledge, becoming an expert and being an acknowledged leader.
Gaining experience is the initial phase of acquiring your qualification and consolidating your skills.

Further skills and knowledge is the next phase where as a practitioner you develop a deeper breadth of experience and understanding within your profession.
Becoming an expert is where you deepen your knowledge and skill in a particular area.

Being an acknowledged leader is where you are recognised by your peers as someone able to guide and influence others.

4. Transitioning from where you are to a leadership role

Now that you understand what you bring to the table, have identified your stream and have defined the level of growth you wish to attain in the future, it’s important to consider how you are going to make this transition. Now is the time to step out of the model of the blueprint and use the principles to transform your career in a tangible way.

If you are currently a clinician and know that the predominantly academic areas of education or research aren’t the best fit for you, management or strategy would be excellent areas to look at. If you were to go down that path, you would need to develop further skills and knowledge on the way to becoming an expert or acknowledged leader.

The knowledge you would need to gain in order to make this transition might include health economics, health law, systems and policy, management, developing health systems and the application of strategies which advance managing patient care processes.

A postgraduate qualification could be an excellent investment in your career development and aspirations. The Monash Online Master of Health Administration has been developed with aspiring health care managers in mind with the course focusing on leadership, marketing, economics and management of the patient care process. This master’s qualification will also boost your health-specific knowledge with areas such as epidemiology and biostatistics being included.

The Master of Health Administration has been purposely designed to build upon your ability to lead and manage effectively in a health care environment. The fusion of the course units from The Faculty of Business and Economics with those from The School of Public Health and Preventative Medicine means that you will gain knowledge of both business and health care practices.

On completion of the course, opportunities that would be open to you as an expert or acknowledged leader would be in health care organisations including government and non-government organisations. You might find yourself in high-level roles in private or health and welfare service management, practice management or in the management of teams of health professionals.

Now you have access to the ultimate blueprint and means to develop your career in health. Now is the time to put your aspirations into action.

The post The ultimate guide to career development for health professionals in just 4 simple steps appeared first on My Health Career.

The following article has been published by UCAT NIE – The National Institute of Education nie.edu.au and republished here with permission.

BEWARE PARENTS, TEACHERS and STUDENTS!

The shift from UMAT to UCAT took place without much warning and with only the university admission offices having been made aware ahead of the change. For everyone else it did come as a surprise and truth be told, it has created a lot of work for people like us who had spent a lot of time researching and developing courses for the UMAT. But at the end of the day, this change is nothing new in the education and training industry and something that every professional educator has to anticipate and be prepared for all the time.

While most students are completely oblivious to this fact, the school syllabus and curriculum gets updated on regular basis just about every year and sometimes these changes can be quite pronounced. But you do not see teachers walking off the job or panicking about the changes. This is because it is a part of our job and when changes happen, you just need to adapt, create new lesson plans, resources and get on with teaching. Change and ongoing learning is a part of a teacher’s job description!

On the other hand, there are opportunistic individuals and businesses, that absolutely love big changes. The fact is, that there is always some anxiety associated with change and if you can turn the anxiety into fear and panic, then you can easily make some money out of it. This business model is not new and has been used for centuries by everyone form backyard salesmen to very large cooperation who capitalise on fear. In-fact in today’s world, we are completely surrounded by it, from organic labels on water bottles, to outrageous insurance policies and unrealistic security threat prevention technology, the list goes on and on. While addressing many of the above fear campaigns is well outside of our scope, the fear campaign about UCAT is definitely something that we can address.

Since the introduction of the UCAT in late September 2018, we have been seeing more and more opportunistic businesses coming out of the woodworks, targeting parents, career teachers and students directly and capitalising on their fear. Their strategy is simple:

Create doubt and disappointment in your current level of preparation.
Create doubt and distrust in your current resources, teachers and tutors.
Enforce the belief that the only chance of surviving the UCAT is with them and they are the only specialists!

Common lines and misleading information that is used by these companies and individuals include:

UCAT is a completely different test than UMAT!
Situation judgement is a completely new construct and no one in Australia knows anything about it!
UCAT is based on UKCAT so you should stick with a company from UK.
And, have you seen the completely new Abstract Reasoning questions?

While some of the above statements have some element of truth, they are mostly misused only for one purpose. To scare and make a sale…. so do not fall for these cheap tricks. Most of the companies that are now targeting Australia are from the United Kingdom, but on the same token, Australia is not short of its own, home-grown con artists who are joining the panic band.

The truth about UCAT does require a much better explanation, but in short

“YOU SHOULD NOT PANIC!”

Everything about the UCAT is good news for anyone who will be sitting this new style of admission test to get into medicine or dentistry. It is understandable that you maybe worried about having been preparing for the UMAT until now, but it is OK. Your preparation has not been in vain and you have not wasted your time. While the UCAT is structured and administered differently than the UMAT, most of the skills that you learned while preparing for the UMAT are still very relevant and directly transferable.

For instance, Sections 1, 2 and 3 of the UCAT tests the exact same skills that Construct 1 of the UMAT was testing. Except, now the skills of UMAT’s Logical Reasoning and Problem Solving have been broken down into specific sub-construct such as Verbal Reasoning, Decision Making and Quantitative Reasoning. Hence, anything you learned while preparing for Construct 1 of the UMAT would have prepared you for the first three sections of the UCAT.

As for the Construct 2 of the UMAT, yes, it is true that this section is no longer relevant directly. But then again, skills learned in Understanding People, do provide a very solid foundation for conflict resolution and situational awareness. The only main different is that now, with the new section of the UCAT (section 5: Situational Judgement), you do need to change your perspective as you need to internalise the scenarios and put more emphasis on putting yourself in other people’s shoes while thinking of your answer choice from the medical ethics standpoint. The fear campaign by overseas organisations that Australian company’s do not have the knowledge to teach for this section is completely bogus. Situational judgement is not a new testing concept in Australia by any means. This particular testing construct has been used by many universities, collages and various industries long before the UCAT. Some universities like University of Newcastle, and Bond University already had Situational Judgement questions in their additional admission criteria into undergraduate medical courses. While we cannot speak for other Australian companies, we can assure you that NIE has been training students for this construct long before its introduction in the UCAT.

And finally, there is the scare tactic about the Abstract Reasoning section (S4). OK, with this section there are some substantial changes. But 1/3rd of the skills that students learned for the Construct 3 of the UMAT is still directly relevant. Section 4 of the UCAT still has the “Continue the Sequence” questions, exactly as they were presented in the UMAT. As for the other question types, while they are different, they are really not as difficult as the Construct 3 questions of the UMAT. Hence, preparing for them is really not rocket-science and can be achieved with some consistency and perseverance.

At this point, you may be asking yourself…so if NIE thinks that they know how to prepare students for the UCAT then why did they partner with a KAPLAN? The answer is simple! NIE does not provide a half-baked service. We know that preparing new and relevant resources will take some time, yet we have a professional obligation to many of our clients to provide them with up-to- date advice and service. The UCAT being adopted from the UK, meant that there had to be a good quality service provider in the UK. We researched a number of service providers and realised that KAPLAN preparation resources were miles ahead of other companies in the UK. And so, the logical choice was to join hands with them and offer their products to our Australian clients with some added personalised services.

Meanwhile, we are still working on other resources. We are reviewing other publisher’s books and will have some of them on offer once we have narrowed our choice down to a good few.

In conclusion, whether you are a UCAT candidate, a parent or a teacher, please do not be worried about the UCAT. The positives of the UCAT outweighs any negatives by a long shot and we truly believe it is a change for the better. And if you are still worried or have any questions, just pick up your phone and call us direct on ph: 1300 974 187 / mob. 0412 439 115 OR write to us to enquiries@nie.edu.au

The post UCAT Fear and Panic Campaign!! appeared first on My Health Career.