Columbia University School of Dental and Oral Surgery - Dental Columbian Yearbook (New York, NY)

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PROSTHETICS One of the great problems of a university is the training of men in the field of dentistry. When the university has discharged its duty and given its stamp of approval that a man is qualified to practise dentistry, there still remains before that person a long and arduous trail which must be traversed before he can cope efficiently with the perplexing problems which will confront him. At graduation the young dentist is provided with a foundation and a working knowl- edge of fundamentals which will enable him to grow and build. He has just learned to walk, so to speak, and if he is to climb far he must continue to study, observe, and apply himself. During the four years spent in the School of Dental and Oral Surgery at Columbia University each student devotes more than one-fourth of his time to subjects covered by the Division of Prosthesis. The first contact is as a freshman in prosthetic technique. At this time as well as in other courses which follow the staff makes every effort to impress upon the student the necessity for neatness and cleanliness in all dental operations and in personal deportment, to have the WM. H. CRAWFORD, D.D.S. Assoc. Prof, of Dentistry HARRY A. YOUNG, D.D.S. Asst. Prof, in Dentistry JOHN F. RALSTON, D.D.S. Asst. Prof, of Dentistry EARLE B. HOYT, D.D.S. Asst. Prof, of Dentistr

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SURGERY From an extended teaching experience I am ready to assert that courses which are not directed entirely into utilitarian channels offer many advantages. The apparently academic studies may be irksome to the undergraduate as he can but rarely appreciate their far-reaching value. As a result he grows to be overwhelmingly technically minded. He is troubled to an unwholesome degree by the desire and eagerness about technical preparation, especially in types of work to his liking. This tendency is creditable and natural. This is what college is for; to prepare him for his life ' s work. In effect, his college course and therefore his horizon would be bounded by requirements were not the curriculum planned on more liberal academic principles. Concentration, experience and repetition tend to superior dexterity and skill. On the other hand, we must recognize that a highly utilitarian tendency can be carried to a detrimental degree. I am satisfied that the average dental student will be able to meet the technical demands of his practice. In time, it will make little differ- ence whether he removed a few more or less teeth during his under- graduat e years. I am troubled with the thought, however, that after the more important ingredients of professional education are a larger fund of related knowledge and cultivated faculties. In the course on oral surgery we are more eager therefore, to introduce to the student during his preparatory stage those ideals and precepts which must be the foundation of surgical practice. A methodical application of the fundamental sciences such as anatomy, physiology, pathology, bacteriology, pharmacology, etc., in the study of disease is essential. We are eager to initiate the development of certain habits; the habit of observation and coordination; the power of dis- criminating between truth and error; the ability to extract the essen- tials from a mass of information and arrange them according to their value; of making sound deductions and inferences from actual findings; the habit of respecting human suffering, etc. These cultivated perceptions lead to sound judgment and adher- ence to the laws which are fundamental to surgical practice. Many pertinent details cannot be learned entirely from text books. Some of it must be lived until it becomes ingrained into one ' s existence and even then must be vigilantly and sedulously cultivated. Lacking in these details leads more frequently to complications, than failing in such attainments, which in the light of a limited experience, are prized more highly. Be prepared to realize that the life of a professional man is not a dance on the drooping petals of a rose. But if mindful that the greater the task, the greater the achievement, your professional obliga- tions will grow to be problems which will offer constant fascination and interest. Adolf Berger, D.D.S., F.A.C.D. William Carr, Professor of Oral Surgery ADOLPH BERGER, D.D.S. William Carr Professor of Oral Surgery ' ;». P- W JOSEPH L. McSWTENEY, D.D.S. Assistant in Dentistry ALBIN R. SEIDEL, D.M.D. Instructor in Dentistry F. A. STEWART, Jr., A.B.. D.D.S. Instructor in Dentistry ROB ' T W. NORTHROP, D.D.S. Instructor in Dentistry MORRIS A. ZIMMER, D.D.S. Instructor in Dentistry

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GILBERT P. SMITH. D.D.S. Instructor in Dentistry MORELL D. McKENZIE. D.D.S. Instructor in Dentistry desire to do every operation as perfectly as it can be done, never to hesitate to remake a piece of work if improvement can be made, and to use and apply knowledge gained from rhe basic sciences. These desires and ideals are a very essen- tial part of our teaching, for upon them rest the standards of a professional man. Unless the graduate has been inspired to do only the best when he is in practise and on his way, then the most carefully outlined course of study has failed. The class of 1936 has had as instructors in the various courses of the prosthetic division seven full time and three part time teachers. This roll includes the names of Dr. Arthur Taylor Rowe, head of this division, and Dr. Paul Benjamin Wiberg. From a professional standpoint the loss of these teachers cannot be felt more keenly anywhere than in this division where they have worked and given of them- selves so freely. This class is fortunate to have known them so well and to have profited by their knowledge and pro- lessional ideals. William H. Crawford. d. j. v. Mclaughlin, D.D.S. Instructor in Dentistry