Canada
The practice of dentistry in Canada is overseen by the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB), while specialization is overseen by the Royal College of Dentists. Today, Canada has about 16,000 dentists. Canadian dentistry is not publicly run (see Medicare (Canada)); however, some provinces provide for free dental care for children and the elderly. Other Canadians are mostly covered by workplace dental plans, but many have to pay out-of-pocket.
For most of the early colonial period dentistry was a rare and unusual practice in Canada. In severe situations, barbers or blacksmiths would pull a tooth, but for many years Canada lagged behind European advances. The first dentists in Canada were United Empire Loyalists who fled the American Revolution. The first recorded dentist in Canada was a Mr. Hume who advertised in a Halifax newspaper in 1814.
During the first half of the 19th century, dentistry expanded rapidly. In 1867 the Ontario Dental Association was formed and in 1868 they founded Canada's first dental school in Toronto, the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario. The University of Toronto agreed to be affiliated with the dental school. As time passed, other Canadian universities also created dentistry programmes. However, the University of Toronto still has the largest dental school in Canada that features the most postgraduate research opportunities as well as certifications for all the dental specialties. The UBC Faculty of Dentistry supports five specialty programs being Prosthodontics, Endodontics, Orthodontics, Pedodontics and Periodontics.
Dental care is not covered by the Canadian health care system, as it is in many other countries with public health care.
- Canadian dental schools
- University of Toronto (1868)
- McGill University (1905)
- Université de Montréal (1905)
- Dalhousie University (1908)
- University of Alberta (1923)
- University of Manitoba (1958)
- University of British Columbia (1964)
- University of Western Ontario (1966)
- University of Saskatchewan (1968)
- Université Laval (1971)
Read more about this topic: Dentistry Throughout The World
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