Course for dentists and hygienists focuses on understanding addiction

As dentists and hygienists in West Virginia keep up with continuing education requirements, two West Virginia University School of Dentistry faculty members offered learning opportunities in drug diversion, medical emergency, infection control, tobacco cessation and occupational hazards.

The West Virginia Academy of Dentistry invited oral surgeon Dr. Bryan Weaver and dental hygienist Ashlee Sowards to present at the Fall 2022 seminar November 4.

Weaver, chair of the department of oral and maxillofacial surgery, taught two courses titled Medical Emergency Prevention and Management for the Dental Professional and Drug Diversion and Best Practices Prescribing Controlled Substances. The medical emergency course content was designed to provide information on prevention and management of common medical emergencies in the dental office. Specifically, it emphasized medical history reviews and clinical decision-making. The drug diversion presentation taught attendees about controlled substance law compliance, the WV Controlled Substances Monitoring Program, identifying drug seeking behaviors and options and prescriptions for pain management including toxicities and drug interactions.

Sowards, associate dental hygiene professor, holds national certification as a tobacco treatment specialist. Her two-hour continuing education course, Tobacco Use and Cessation Efforts for West Virginia Oral Healthcare Providers, identified tobacco use trends in the state and nationally. Participants learned more about the neuroscience of nicotine addiction and sources of nicotine. The course also focused on establishing cessation protocols for patients, interviewing techniques to motivate patients to quit and understanding relapse and ways to help patients overcome it.

The West Virginia Academy of General Dentistry reports more than 290 members in the region 6 chapter that includes West Virginia, Tennessee, Missouri and Kentucky.