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Updated: Dec 10, 2025
Accuracy in Dental Medicine, A New Way to Measure Trueness and Precision
Published on: April 29, 2014
Medicine and dentistry: Shall ever the twain meet?
Tarun Sen Gupta1, Jackie Stuart2
1MBBS, PhD, FRACGP, FACRRM, Professor of Health Professional Education, College of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld.
Background:
Oral health and general medical health are intimately linked. However, medical and dental practitioners often work in isolation from each other and have separate training, funding, regulatory and administrative systems.
Objective:
The aim of this article is to explore the history behind the divide between medicine and dentistry, and the challenges this raises.
Discussion:
The siloed nature of the two professional groups may be attributed to historical backgrounds, deficiencies in interdisciplinary education, government funding discrepancies and differing models of care. The two professions have evolved with different social drivers and scientific underpinnings, with only a recent appreciation of the many connections between the health of the mouth and the health of the body. Solutions to overcome this divide should be considered in order to ensure better outcomes for patients, the community and perhaps the professions themselves.
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