Continuing Education

Now Available: Continuing Education Credits

The Dental Patient with Dementia - Part One
The Dental Patient with Dementia - Part Two
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Authored by: Renato Silva, Timothy Kirkpatrick, Ariadne Letra, Zhen Shen, Jason Knappb, Austyn Grissom, Han Na Cho, Bailey Weightman
Traumatic dental injuries are often the result of facial trauma and affect individuals of all ages. More than one billion individuals and an average of one in four ages 6-50 have experienced dental trauma. There are several types of traumatic dental injuries involving soft and hard tissues, ranging from simple crown fractures to more complex types associated with damage to the soft tissues and facial bones. The type and severity of the injury will influence its prognosis and determine the best treatment approaches. This Quality Resource Guide (QRG) provides an evidence-based review of: the classification of traumatic dental injuries associated with dislocation of teeth; proper management of traumatic dental injuries; timing and chronology of treatment procedures for traumatic dental injuries, and; expected prognosis and treatment outcomes. The QRG, in narrative and table formats, supplemented by high-quality photos documenting therapy and follow-up, presents the clinical findings and treatment guidelines for concussion/subluxation, extrusive luxation, lateral luxation, intrusive luxation and avulsion. It will serve as an essential reference when a patient presents with an oral traumatic injury and a resource for practitioners and staff members as they discuss treatment, follow-up, and prognosis with a patient having a traumatic dental injury.
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Authored by: Gary F. Guest, DDS, Michaell A. Huber, DDS
The dental record is the official document that houses all pertinent information about a patient receiving care in a dental practice. It archives historical and diagnostic information, as well as details diagnoses, treatment plans, consents to treatment, and the specifics of care provided. A properly constructed and maintained dental record allows concise and efficient communication between the dentist and the patient, as well as between the dentist and other health care professionals. A well-documented record may be the dentist’s best defense in a case of alleged malpractice and may serve as a key component of a forensic investigation. This Guide provides straightforward, concise guidance in constructing and maintaining a dental record that will meet contemporary standards of care, as well as federal patient privacy standards. Since general dentists often find it difficult to document occlusal status in an efficient manner, a helpful “Rapid Occlusal Assessment” template is provided as an appendix.
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Authored by: Thomas Oates, D.M.D., PhD
The overwhelming majority of patients with periodontitis are treated in the offices of general practitioners and the most common services rendered are non-surgical in nature. This Guide addresses the subject of non-surgical therapy from the perspective of evidence-based dentistry to include a discussion of the etiology of periodontitis and the need for therapy as the basis for a rationale for treatment. The assessment of non-surgical treatment outcomes with a view to decisions regarding further treatment is a prominent feature of the Guide. The discussion of non-surgical approaches goes beyond mechanical debridement to include subgingival irrigation, systemic antibiotics and locally delivered antibiotics. Treatment planning decisions and the maintenance phase of therapy are also discussed. This edition includes updates from research published over the past three years, providing valuable guidance to the clinician providing periodontal care.
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Authored by: Maria T. Fluent, DDS, CDIPC
The U.S.Center for Disease Control Guidelines state that each dental office should assign at least one person as an infection control coordinator (ICC). The ICC should understand the modes of cross-contamination in dentistry, current infection prevention policies, products/equipment available to maintain staff and patient safety, and agencies' policies/guidelines that impact infection prevention and safety in dental practice. While the ICC is responsible for coordinating the infection prevention program, the entire dental team must be committed and accountable to comply with the office’s written infection control program. This Quality Resource Guide (QRG) discusses regulatory and advisory agencies that impact infection prevention in dentistry, the role and responsibilities of the infection control coordinator, the precautions needed to prevent disease transmission in the dental setting and provides current updates for infection prevention policies and protocols. This QRG will serve as an essential resource for the dental office ICC and all office team members during new staff members’ orientation, as well as periodic office updates regarding infection control.
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The MetLife Quality Initiatives Program is recognized by the following organizations to award continuing education credits for its educational offerings:

  • American Dental Association Continuing Education Recognition Program (CERP) 05/01/21 - 06/30/25
  • Academy of General Dentistry

In addition, dentists in the states of California and Florida have unique requirements for licensure purposes. The MetLife Quality Initiatives Program is recognized by the Dental Board of California (RP4331) and Florida Board of Dentistry (50-37446).

Dentists and allied health care professionals can earn continuing education credits by participating in educational offerings sponsored by the MetLife Quality Initiatives Program.

Continuing education is an integral part of staying current on clinical and professional developments. Practicing and Academic dentists who serve on the MetLife Dental Advisory Council meet regularly to review quality data and the educational needs identified by dentists participating in the Preferred Dentist Program. Educational offerings are developed as a result of this needs assessment.

You can participate in the needs assessment by completing the evaluation form that accompanies the guide(s) you review. You will be asked about topics for future guides. Your comments are shared with the guide's author. Guides are updated every three years, and more often when changes in dentistry indicate.

MetLife Quality Resource Guides (QRG) are self-study courses authored by full time members of a dental school faculty or dentists who hold a prominent position with a national dental organization (e.g. NIDCR, ADA) or professionals who have published in the subject area. Guides undergo an extensive peer review process prior to publication.

CE credits are FREE to dentists and office staff in the MetLife programs as a benefit of participation. Non-participating dentists can access MetLife educational offerings at no charge. If a non-participating dentist desires educational credits, he or she will be prompted to provide credit card information prior to the post-test being processed.

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