July 25, 2016
Third-year students receive clinical coats
Third-year students enjoy the moment after donning their clinical coats.
Dr. Dolphine Oda, Professor of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, addresses the students.
Sixty-six students from the Class of 2018, including eight new students in the International DDS program, formally received their clinical coats on Saturday in the School of Dentistry’s 12th annual White Coat Ceremony in Kane Hall on the University of Washington campus.
The ceremony, which is sponsored by the school’s Dental Alumni Association, signifies the students’ ascension to the role of clinical provider. During their first two years, students observe and assist in the clinic while they focus on classroom studies and practice on dental mannequins in the school’s Simulation Laboratory. They begin to treat patients in third year under close faculty supervision.
Paul Krzeszowski, with assistance from faculty member Dr. John Wataha, puts on his clinical coat.
Dr. Dolphine Oda, whose second-year course in oral pathology is often cited by students as the class they enjoy the most, addressed the students at their invitation before the students took a pledge of excellence. The pledge includes commitments to conduct themselves with integrity; to demonstrate compassion and empathy for patients and colleagues; to aspire to leadership; and to maintain a high level of competence.
Jessica Wieker gets a hand with her clinical coat from Dr. Glen Johnson of the faculty.
Students in the International DDS program are licensed dentists from other countries who come to the UW to complete the last two years of the dental curriculum, with a goal of gaining U.S. licensure.