Useful Tips to Find Continuing Education Courses
Even after finishing a degree, dentists require a certain number of continuing education hours to begin their practice: this is obvious to anyone in dentistry. Certain states will require different licenses, and different requirements can range in hours and be costly for new dentists just starting. Certain states may even have topic requirements to keep up with, which doesn’t make the experience any more fun, and some state even requires a habitual update on CE courses every five years. However, for any experienced dentist, this is just part of the job description of their everyday life, and the weekend-long seminars and boring classrooms can make staying current tedious and expensive.
However, online courses and unconventional websites have taken upon this need for CE course credits and have revamped their websites to make seminars more fun and engaging for dental enthusiasts. Searching on the Internet can give you some great unexpected sources for CE and even help you find sources for some of the state requirements dentists, and hygienists need for their practice. But how do you know that the website’s trustworthy? How do you know you’re getting the most out of your money? We can provide you with some tips to follow on how to get the most out of your CE.
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Tip 1: Insurance Companies
Insurance companies such as Aetna Insurance can give a few hours of CE courses for free. Depending on the insurance company you affiliate with, you can potentially find some reliable sources for CE credit.
Tip 2: Local Laboratories
Your local lab could even have some CE courses you can take. Local labs tend to greatly advertise their businesses as dentist-friendly, so contacting your local lab about any upcoming courses or classes available can help strengthen the relationship between your practice and your lab and help get you free CE courses about topics such as digital placements for restorations and CAD/CAM technology.
Tip 3: Doctor Events
Your state’s ADA New Dentist Committee can also offer CE credit, especially if you’re a new dentist in the area, and can offer reduced prices for CE events, even if you’re in residency status. When these events occur, timing matters, so even while the course could be six months out, you can still get a discount rate for CE and plan ahead for the course.
Tip 4: Manufacturers
If you’re a fan of brands such as Ivoclar Vivadent, these manufacturers can teach you about the technologies they create through their personalized CE courses. You may be surprised to learn that manufacturers take the time to give dentists a great continuing education experience, paying for flight tickets, paying for food and hotel rooms, and giving interactive seminars to educate dentists.
Tip 5: Travel Companies
Need a vacation, but dread your CE courses? Travel companies such as University at Sea and Cruise & Travel Partners both offer cruise and travel conferences throughout Europe, South America, and the Caribbean for discount prices, giving you the luxury to see the sights you’ve always dreamed of without sacrificing the time dedicated to CE courses. While these trips tend to cost the same as any family vacation, each travel plan is infused with CE courses so you can enjoy your time out sightseeing while taking care of your career.
The Internet, however, provides an extensive array of inexpensive CE courses, and even performing a simple Google search can give you a wide variety of options. Here’s our top list of websites and organizations that can help you get the CE courses you need.
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1. NetCE by American Dental Association
NetCE is a publishing company supporting educators and students needing CE courses in all matters of the medical and healthcare industry, including dentists, dental assistants, and hygienists. As an online platform for curricula, the website keeps up with the latest trends and developments in science, technology, and economics. It operates as a provider-directed study, allowing university faculty members and healthcare authors to apply and host CE seminars for students. Recommended by the ADA, NetCE is a committed, reliable source for CE that offers both free and priced courses within a wide range of topics.
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2. American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry
Dental organizations are also an excellent source of CE credits. Organizations such as the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry can provide CE courses that keep up with the latest industry trends in cosmetic dentistry and restorative dentistry. The AACD focuses on giving annual scientific sessions, virtual dental courses, and insights into the Journal of Cosmetic Dentistry and hosts annual events throughout the year to cater to the needs of dentists and dental assistants focusing on cosmetic treatments as their primary profession. Dentists taking courses through the AACD can earn accredited status and even gain more through this accreditation.
3. Spear Education
Because online education exists everywhere, Spear Education refocuses on this problem through its online platform, giving free and premium services for CE courses and other educational opportunities. Spear Education offers education for both practitioners and staff members through their Spear Online Learning Resource, displaying over 1,300 CE courses, organized and constantly updated weekly with new materials. It also includes study resources for team members and financial strategy programs for scheduling, messaging, and video meetings. While the price for access is high, the content is premium, and the resources are highly applicable in real-world scenarios.
4. Procter & Gamble
Suppose you’re searching through websites and find that their courses don’t provide enough for your needs. In that case, Procter & Gamble offers over 150 free dental continuing education courses through an education library. This library, advertised by Procter & Gamble’s Oral B+Crest brand, covers a wide range of topics all related to the healthcare community. Each material provided undergoes a peer-review process and is developed by experts in the field. All content taught is supported by science and research, and each course is offered without charge, and all are available online for accessibility.
5. DentalTown
Dentaltown provides podcasts, forums, and blog posts for dentists to catch up on and provides their community with CE courses, hosting the dental community’s most influential speakers and the latest topics of the decade. Each week, Dentaltown constantly updates its resources to give its members exclusive access to topics pertaining to all aspects of dentistry, including cosmetic dentistry, with the cost for credit included in almost all of its courses. Their CE resource features a library of comprehensive courses and CE curriculums to explore topics in dentistry and is certified by the ADA and CERP program.
