Press releases
published 21.04.2006 10:00
The University of British Columbia and Planmeca started a new era in dental education
As a top-ranking dental equipment manufacturer, Planmeca has long been considered a technology leader in dental equipment design. The Finnish company has recently been involved in major projects related to IT enabled oral health care documentation and interactive computer based learning. In collaboration with some of the world’s leading universities, Planmeca has developed a unique learning environment for dental education based on intelligent equipment and software integration. The Faculty of Dentistry at the University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver, Canada, was the first dental school to adopt the new learning environment. Their new university clinic, which was opened in January and officially inaugurated in March, uses the new integrated system in 132 clinical and teaching operatories.
Planmeca supplies UBC with a system solution that links digital dental care units and digital imaging equipment to a comprehensive software with embedded clinical content and tailored features for education process management. The JAVA-based software platform enables information network integration, making the solution unique in its kind.
The interactive teaching environment is based on the platform that enables remote monitoring and management of all equipment. The supervisor has an online overview of and direct access to detailed equipment data, so that he/she can disable equipment usage according to planning-approval-treatment sequence. The solution promotes efficient hands-on learning with real or simulated patients. The student can proceed at his/her own pace and ask for help through the network. Moreover, the detailed clinical content of the software provides step-by-step guidance on treatment planning.
The software and the equipment being integrated, the concept also automatically stores complete workplace and instrument specific data as well as data related to treatment phases and used materials. This provides a data pool for student performance evaluation, quality assurance and research purposes.
"We see a growing demand for detailed clinical documentation in oral health care, because the general awareness of patient and dental team safety will grow. Our solution automates the majority of data input and you can record all findings and patient information at chairside with a single mouse or touchpad click. All patient information along with medical history, risk factors and digital X-ray images are available in one user interface for all clinicians, which remarkably streamlines communication and workflow", says Mr Tuomas Lokki, Vice President, Marketing and Sales, Planmeca Oy.
Planmeca’s expertise in IT and equipment design as well as their profound understanding of clinical workflow enabled them to pioneer in software and equipment integration. "Such school projects are highly demanding yet rewarding for the school, since they involve much more than just decisions on equipment and advanced software solutions. Any school will greatly benefit from the new system in case the school uses this unique opportunity to analyze and evaluate their pedagogical processes and operational models. We are proud to partner the pioneering universities", notes Mr Markku Wederhorn, Vice President, Digital Imaging and Applications, Planmeca Oy.
For further information, please contact:
Tuomas Lokki, Vice President, Marketing and Sales
Tel. +358 20 7795 523
tuomas.lokki@planmeca.com
Markku Wederhorn, Vice President, Digital Imaging and Applications
Tel. +358 20 7795 668
markku.wederhorn@planmeca.com
Andrea R. Wink, Director of Development UBC Faculty of Dentistry
Tel: +1 604 822 6808
awink@interchange.ubc.ca
Planmeca Oy
Planmeca Oy, the parent company of the Finnish Planmeca Group, was established in 1971. Planmeca manufactures a full line of high technology dental equipment, including dental units, panoramic and intraoral X-rays, as well as leading digital imaging X-ray systems. The company has also pioneered in the use of digital dental practice concepts that allow efficient and ergonomic information management.
More than 96% of Planmeca’s production is exported to over 80 countries. Planmeca is well established on the U.S. market and has considerable market shares in many European countries. The company’s market share is profitably growing in Asia. Planmeca is Europe’s third largest dental equipment manufacturer and the largest privately-owned dental manufacturer in the field. The Group estimated turnover for the year 2006 is approximately MEUR 470 with over 1,800 employees.
