Fort Sill Advanced Education in General Dentistry (AEGD) 12 Month Program: Operationally Focused Professional Education
Mission Statement
Instill professional knowledge and integrity and impart clinical experience and skills to a new generation of practitioners in ways that ensure excellence and personal satisfaction.
Vision Statement
To provide each resident with a high quality, clinically-based advanced education beyond that of dental school.
LTC Travis L. Ochsner Program Director 
MAJ Angelica Bedoya Astrauskas Assistant Program Director 
Shiloh Wright Executive Assistant The Fort Sill Advanced Education General Dentistry-12 Month (AEGD-12) Program provides a professional educational experience at the post-doctoral level. Training consists of supervised clinical and didactic experiences in specialty areas of dental practice, with a strong emphasis on clinical experiences which has a general breakdown of 70-80% clinical and 20-30% didactic/military experience. The purpose of the program is to produce a versatile general dentist who is responsible for and responsive to the oral health needs of his/her patients and the military community. Upon graduation, the Dental Officer will know both capabilities and limitations. This knowledge will enable him/her to provide his/her patients with comprehensive dental treatment or enable him/her to recognize the need for referral to the appropriate specialist. The Fort Sill AEGD promotes a comprehensive restorative approach driven by interdisciplinary care, CAD/CAM technology, and 3D guided surgeries. Even though we are located in southwest Oklahoma this program has world class facilities and technology that rival any program in the country.
The AEGD-12 Month Program has been accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation. Graduates of the program are awarded the “9D” suffix to the 63A primary SSI. The program is sponsored by and conducted within the United States Army DENTAC at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Fort Sill is home to four dental clinics: Cowan Dental Clinic, located on 605 Randolph Road; Allen Dental Clinic, located on 6037 Bessinger Road; and the D.C. #2/Oral Surgery Clinic, located at Reynolds Army Community Hospital (RACH) and Military Processing Site (MPS), located on 6005 Bessinger Road. Laboratory support for the program is provided by Cowan and Allen Dental Clinic labs, with additional support available from the Army Dental Laboratory located at Fort Gordon, Georgia.
Cowan Dental Clinic is the primary training site for the program and will offer clinical training in Endodontics, Periodontics, Prosthodontics, Operative Dentistry, Comprehensive Dentistry and Acute Dental Care. Training in Oral Surgery, Anesthesia, Hospital Dentistry, Acute Care and After Hours Emergency Care is conducted at Cowan Dental Clinic and Dental Clinic 2. The Program has limited formal training in orthodontics with selection of some minor tooth movement cases and limited exposure to pediatric dentistry with rotations to the Indian Health Service Hospital in Lawton, OK. All residents will attend the Combat Casualty Care Course (C-4), which includes the Pre Hospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) course at Camp Bullis, Texas.
Army AEGD Goals: 1. To help each resident become the best dental professional that he or she can be by:
- A. Increasing the resident’s competence and confidence as dentists.
- B. Enabling the resident to assume increasing responsibility for more varied and complex cases in order to provide high quality comprehensive, multidisciplinary oral health.
- C. Enhancing the resident’s ability to make sound clinical judgments at an advanced educational level and to understand their limitations.
- D. Improving the resident’s ability to interact with all health care practitioners. This includes functioning effectively and efficiently in multiple health care environments within the interdisciplinary health care teams.
- E. Promoting ethical and compassionate treatment of patients. This involves using the values of professional ethics, life-long learning, patient centered care, and the adaptability and acceptance of cultural diversity in professional practice.
- F. Enhancing the resident’s ability to effectively communicate and promote good oral and systemic health and disease prevention to their patients. This includes directing health promotion and disease prevention activities.
- G. Improving the resident’s ability to work with dental auxiliaries and treat them with dignity and respect.
- H. Improving the resident’s ability to effectively manage patients, staff, and resources in order to better provide high quality comprehensive dentistry.
- I. Increasing the resident’s interest in and appreciation of dental literature and continuing education. This includes applying scientific principles to learning and oral health care.
- J. Developing the resident’s skills in oral and written communication.
- K. Understand the oral health needs of the community and engage in community service.
- A. Promoting and living by the Army Values
- Loyalty – Bear true faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit, and other Soldiers.
- Duty – Fulfill your obligations
- Respect – Treat people as they should be treated.
- Selfless-Service – Put the welfare of the Nation, the Army, and your subordinates before you own.
- Honor – Live up to all the Army Values
- Integrity – Do what’s right, legally and morally.
- Personal Courage – Face fear, danger or adversity (physical or moral).