A new dental learning clinic at Madison Area Technical College will expand its offering to students as it looks to improve its curriculum and access to care across Wisconsin.
On Sept. 19, Madison College hosted a ribbon cutting and open house for its new dental clinic. The $3.08 million project includes 15 computer-equipped chairs, a sterilization center and top-of-the-line technology for students. It comes in conjunction with the addition of Expanded Function Dental Auxiliary (EFDA) certification in Wisconsin, which was approved in 2022 by Gov. Tony Evers.
The certificate expands what a dental assistant is able to do through allowing for more tasks like fabrication of temporary crowns, adjustment of dentures, removal of oral appliances, polishing and applying fluoride and sealants. Expanded space also allows for an expansion of dental hygienist programs.
(Photo by Omar Waheed)
“This space will not only affect our students, it will affect the profession. It will affect the clients. It will affect people we don’t even know yet,” said Dr. Beth Giles-Klinkner, Madison College Provost. “The impact of this is farther reaching than any of us could imagine in our community by allowing our students to earn a living wage.”
Certifications as an EFDA are not present in every state. In the United States, 38 states have an EFDA level. What an EFDA allows specifically varies state by state with different degrees of certification and time it takes, according to the Dental Assistant National Board. The EFDA program at Madison College is a semester long and 11 credit hours to receive Wisconsin’s level of certification offered by the school.
There’s a two-fold aspect towards Madison College’s efforts with EFDA. First, EFDA-certified dental assistants generally earn more due to the expansion of procedures they can perform. A study from Dental Post found that on average, a dental assistant with an EDFA certification earns $2.67 more an hour — or $4,806 per year.
Second, it opens the window to address a gap in dental professionals that has impacted the country. With an already existing shortage, expanding what its current and prospective workforce does can alleviate some shortfalls.
In Wisconsin, an estimate of those impacted by a dental professional shortage shows that over 867,000 are affected. Madison College hopes that the increase in ability and higher wages could attract more people into the dental field.
(Photo: Omar Waheed)
“All of that is helping us chip away at the need for dental professionals in the community,” said Marissa Tokarcyzk, Madison College dean of health sciences. “When we came to creating this space, we wanted to make sure that it was an experience of what we’re seeing in dental clinics.”
In addition, Madison College looks towards expanding its outreach for its dental programs. It is working with Centro Hispano on ways to reach typically underrepresented students and provide support to help them find a career in dentistry, Tokarcyzk said.
“Sometimes, students have to choose between going to school and jobs and family obligations. We’re working closely with our internal colleagues to find grant opportunities so that students don’t have to pay for school,” Tokarcyzk said.
