| Background and Description |
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| Background |
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The Board of Dentistry is the second oldest licensing board in Oregon, created by an act of the Legislature passed February 23, 1887.
The Mission of the Oregon Board of Dentistry is to protect the public by assuring that the citizens of Oregon receive the highest possible quality oral health care.
The authority and responsibilities of the Board are contained in Oregon Revised Statutes.
Statutes regarding Dentists: ORS Chapter 679
Click here to link to this statute.
Statutes regarding Dental Hygienists: ORS Chapter 680.010 to 680.205
Click here to link to this statute.
Oregon Administrative Rules: Chapter 818
Click here to link to this rule.
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| Goals |
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The goals of the Board are to protect the public from unsafe, incompetent or fraudulent practitioners and to encourage licensees to practice safely and competently in the best interests of their patients.
The Board does this through:
- Setting education standards;
- Testing the competency of applicants through written and clinical examinations;
- Requiring continuing education of all licensees;
- Investigating complaints and enforcing the provisions of the Dental Practice Act and Rules of the Board;
- Communicating Board policies and other pertinent information to all licensees on a regular basis;
- Providing clear interpretation of Board statutes and rules to licensees and members of the public;
- Acting as a resource to dental consumers in determining the adequacy of their dental treatment;
- Working with other health care licensing boards, professional associations (both local, state and at the national level) and the educational system to develop partnerships for forging a viable health care delivery system.
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| Funding |
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The activities of the Board are funded from license application, renewal, examination and permit fees paid by dentists and dental hygienists. No state General Funds (tax revenue) are allocated to the Board for its operations. The Board´s budget for the period July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2009 is approximately $1.8 million.
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| Primary Activities |
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The Board’s primary activities are examination, licensure and enforcement.
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Licensing, Permits and Endorsements
- General Dentists
- Specialty Dentists
- Dental Faculty
- Dental Hygienists
- Expanded Function Endorsements
- Administration of local anesthesia
- Use of high-speed handpieces to polish amalgams
- Dental Hygienists - Limited Access Permit (unsupervised practice in certain settings)
- Anesthesia Permits
- Nitrous — Dentists and Dental Hygienists
- Conscious Sedation — Dentist
- Deep Sedation — Dentist
- General Anesthesia - Dentist
- Examinations
General Dentists and Dental Hygienists: As of November 1, 2005, a clinical examination for initial licensure conducted by any state board or regional testing agency is accepted as long as the examination was taken within five years from the date the applicant applies for an Oregon license.
Dental Specialists: The Board conducts its own examination for specialty licensure in eight specialty areas
- Endodontics
- Pediatric Dentistry
- Periodontics
- Prosthodontics
- Public Health Dentistry
- Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
- Oral Pathology
- Orthodontics
Jurisprudence — all applicants are required to pass the State’s Jurisprudence examination.
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License Statistics — September 2008
3,638 dentists (of whom approximately 647 are specialists)
3,612 dental hygienists
- Enforcement
The Board investigates complaints submitted alleging misconduct or unacceptable patient care by licensees of the Board. Details of complaints are confidential and not available as public information. If a licensee has been disciplined by the Board, the details of the disciplinary action (but not of the investigation) become public. Approximately 250 complaints are filed with the Board every year. Between 15% and 20% result in disciplinary action being taken.
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