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Dental commission clarifies statutory continuing‑education requirements; mandates CPR and two-hour items every two years
Summary
After a statutory review with Department of Public Health staff, the commission clarified that infection control, controlled‑substance prescribing and CPR are mandatory every two years, and agreed to list the remaining topics (including new statutory additions) from which dentists must choose three.
Members of the Connecticut State Dental Commission reviewed required continuing‑education (CE) topics after recent statutory changes and recommended a clarified, user‑friendly list for dentists.
Commission members Monica and Leslie, joined by Drs. Bumpus and Cypes, reported they worked with Chris from the Department of Public Health to align the commission’s CE guidance with state statute. They said some topics in the statute (for example, infection control and prescribing controlled substances) are mandatory and should be presented in the guidance as mandatory every two years rather than mixed among elective lists.
Leslie told the commission the statute now requires dentists to choose three of 12 topics; the commission therefore removed items that are already mandatory from the elective pool to reduce confusion. Members recommended explicitly labeling the mandatory hours and adding the phrase “every two years” where appropriate so licensees do not misread the guidance.
The commission also discussed adding topics such as treating medically complex patients and the latest research on dental materials to the elective list and keeping CPR visible as a required item for reinstatement cases where staff regularly confirm CPR currency. The group asked staff to prepare a printed and web version that uses plain language and to submit the revised list to DPH for publication (DPH staff indicated a target date of December 1 for posting).
No formal vote was required; members thanked those who prepared the revision and noted the statutory language limits how much the commission can consolidate.
