A second dental school is coming to the state of Washington as Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences broke ground on the new dental school.
A second dental school is coming to the state of Washington as Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences broke ground on the Equity Hall.
The building will house the incoming school of dental medicine, set to launch in the Fall of 2025. PNWU says the curriculum will focus on preparing students to work in rural, medically underserved areas in response to a dental workforce shortage.
Dr. Nathan Russell, the president of the Washington State Dental Association, says dentists working in rural areas is one of the biggest challenges facing the dental industry.
Looking back at his time training with the Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic, he says he hopes the local addition will help students fall in love with dentistry while also mending one of the challenges.
“Currently, Washington state only trains a quarter of its dentist workforce in state," says Dr. Russell. "Building a new dental school in Washington creates more opportunities for our residents to be trained as dentists locally, which increases the likelihood that they will remain."
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