Noura Fadel Rateb D.D.S. FAGD

An Advanced Practice Dental Therapist is:<br/>(1) A dental therapist who has completed additional training beyond basic dental therapy education and provides dental services in accordance with state advanced practice dental therapist laws or statutes; or<br/>(2) A dental hygienist with a graduate degree in advanced dental therapy prepared for independent and interdependent decision making and direct accountability for clinical judgment across the dental health care continuum.<br/>The individual has been authorized by the relevant state board or a tribal entity to provide services under the remote supervision of a dentist. The functions of the advanced practice dental therapist vary based on the needs of the dentist, the educational preparation of the advanced practice dental therapist and state dental practice acts and regulations.

A dentist is a person qualified by a doctorate in dental surgery (D.D.S.) or dental medicine (D.M.D.), licensed by the state to practice dentistry, and practicing within the scope of that license. There is no difference between the two degrees: dentists who have a DMD or DDS have the same education. Universities have the prerogative to determine what degree is awarded. Both degrees use the same curriculum requirements set by the American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation. Generally, three or more years of undergraduate education plus four years of dental school is required to graduate and become a general dentist. State licensing boards accept either degree as equivalent, and both degrees allow licensed individuals to practice the same scope of general dentistry. Additional post-graduate training is required to become a dental specialist.

Source: NUCC, CMS