History of VCU Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
The VCU Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery has an intricate history with that of the School of Dentistry, the VCU Medical Center and VCU. The School of Dentistry was originally established in 1893 when the University College of Medicine opened as the Medical College of Virginia. A dental department was one of its original divisions. The Medical College of Virginia inaugurated a dental education program in 1897, and in 1913 the two schools merged to form the MCV School of Dentistry, now part of the VCU Medical Center. In 1968, the Medical College of Virginia merged with Richmond Professional Institute to form Virginia Commonwealth University. The School of Dentistry is located on the MCV Campus.
While the VCU OMFS is primarily based within VCU School of Dentistry, it is also a division within the Department of Surgery of the VCU School of Medicine, with the OMFS faculty members having dual appointments. Departmental academic offices for the faculty are located in the Wood Memorial Building, while the outpatient faculty practice is in the Lyons Dental Building. The in-hospital patient care and the outpatient Residency Program Clinic are located at the VCU Medical Center hospital. The Residency program is primarily based in the VCU Medical Center with an affiliation with the VCU School of Dentistry.
The department is nationally and internationally recognized and represents, teaches and administers patient care to the full scope of the specialty. It has a long tradition of commitment to excellent patient care, innovative teaching, scholarly contribution to the field, and service to the specialty and the oral and maxillofacial surgery community at large.
VCU OMFS today
Presently, the OMFS department consists of five full-time faculty members with diverse interests, training and background and a combined experience in the field of more than 100 years.
The full-time faculty members are part of the University Intramural Oral and Maxillofacial private practice where patients with a wide variety of oral and facial diseases and conditions are evaluated and treated. Thousands of patients are treated every year for conditions that cover the entire scope of the specialty at our outpatient facilities and at the hospital.
The department also has a very long tradition of excellence in teaching by the full-time and part-time faculty. The department has more than 30 part-time faculty members with different backgrounds and experience. The combined, extensive knowledge and expertise of the faculty enriches and expands the educational experience of the residents and students.
The educational programs at VCU are well balanced between didactic and clinical activities. There are two clinics; one located at the School of Dentistry and the other at MCV Hospitals at the VCU Medical Center, where students and residents obtain their clinical training. The hospital is a Level I trauma center, with more than 2,200 trauma patients admitted
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