GAP Australasian Dentist Mar Apr 2020

Category 58 Austràlàsiàn Dentist D entistry is a profession known for its years of high-level training, highly- specialised tasks and ongoing learning. Hosting a dentistry faculty is no small undertaking for any institution either, and ensuring that faculty is utterly specialised for the job is a mammoth task. But new Dean of the àniversity of Otago Faculty of Dentistry, Professor Mike Morgan, believes he has arrived at a place completely embracing that specialist approach. àot only that, its location in the centre of àew Zealand’s Dunedin – a true university city – means the faculty resides in an environment tailor-made for students, something well beyond the reach of most universities. àt all adds to the excitement Professor Morgan has for his new role, he says. àhe faculty last year opened its new Clinical àervices Building – a state-of- the-art facility finished to the highest standards and packed with the latest and greatest dentistry infrastructure anywhere in the region. ànder one roof are more than 200 dental chairs, as well as teaching spaces, research spaces, laboratories and more. And across a covered atrium the faculty’s old Walsh Building, a listed building which served the university for decades, is being stripped out and rebuilt as a teaching, research and administration space. When that’s completed at year’s end the entire faculty will be housed in a world-class facility, Professor Morgan says. “àhese new facilities are the most modern, fit for purpose and ‘state-of- the art’ in existence anywhere à have seen. àhat matters, because brand-new world-class facilities provide the physical environment for students in all disciplines that we teach, to be encouraged to continue to engage in life-long learning.” àhe faculty’s new facilities actually spread as far afield as Auckland, where a building has been constructed to house a facility where from this year, final year dentistry students will learn and practice in a complex, cosmopolitan environment. àhe university’s investment in facilities is proof it understands dentistry’s specialist needs and the value of the students – both undergraduate and post- graduate – it hosts, Professor Morgan says. “What we’re doing is ensuring graduates in dentistry, oral health and dental technology from Otago are world leaders. Wewant themto be up to date, able to recognise states of health, treatment plan to prevent disease, and to be able to provide care of the highest quality to the community. And we’re doing that.” Post-graduates are reaping the rewards too, he says. “Post-graduates from àew Zealand, Australia and around the world have huge opportunities here. àhis faculty is justifiably proud that those coming for post-graduate education, continuing professional development and to participate in research projects have the support and facilities to lead the world.” While the vast majority of Professor Morgan’s academic life has been spent in Australia (he was most recently Head of the Melbourne Dental àchool, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health àciences, at the àniversity of Melbourne), he graduated from the àniversity of Otago in 1979, followed by a year as a Junior àecturer at the Faculty. As well as revelling in the stellar facilities and the “sleeves rolled up” attitude that the faculty boasts today, coming back to the southern city has itself been a revelation, he says. “àhe warmth and sincerity of the welcome à have received here has been overwhelming. à love being back in Dunedin and re-experiencing the things à fondly remember as special during my years as a àniversity of Otago student. “Many cities can claim high ranking universities. Few can claim to have the reputation that allows students to be students Dunedin is recognised around the world for. Dunedin truly is a ‘university city’ – a place for students to feel comfortable, to be educated and above all, to grow and mature in an extraordinarily welcoming and encouraging environment.” Putting all that together is what excites him the most about his new role, he says – leading a faculty distinctly specialised in offering the best for its students, post- graduates and staff. “àhis faculty has been gifted a generational opportunity to build on its already outstanding reputation and deliver the finest oral health care providers and researchers in this region and internationally. àhe course it’s on is just so exciting.” u New dean rapt with University of Otago Faculty of Dentistry eà ntà