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Accredited dental school

Missouri School of Dentistry and Oral Health

Missouri School of Dentistry & Oral Health, 800 W. Jefferson St., Kirksville, MO 63501

School website Health centers in Missouri

Based in Kirksville, MO, Missouri School of Dentistry and Oral Health is an accredited dental school. Schools like this one train dentists, and much of that training happens by treating members of the public in supervised clinics on campus.

Fees at a teaching clinic are set by the school and are usually well below private practice rates, though the care is reduced-cost rather than free. In exchange, appointments are longer and treatment can take more visits than it would elsewhere. Missouri has 3 accredited dental schools in total, listed on the Missouri page.

What This School Publishes for Patients

This school screens new patients before taking them on. Being screened is not the same as being accepted: the school is deciding whether your case suits its students and its teaching schedule.

Some insurance is accepted here. Plans and public programs change from year to year, so confirm yours by name rather than asking whether insurance is taken in general.

A pediatric clinic operates alongside the adult clinics. Minimum ages and waiting lists differ from the adult side, so ask about children separately.

The school lists a patient line on 480.248.8100 and clinic hours on its patient pages. Both change between academic terms, so check again shortly before you travel.

Common Questions

Can I get dentures made here?

Complete and partial dentures are among the treatments dental schools most often do, and the saving against private practice is usually largest on exactly this kind of work. The catch is laboratory costs, which are frequently billed on top of the discounted fee. Ask for the total, laboratory work included.

Is emergency or walk-in care available?

Some schools run a limited emergency session, usually early in the morning and usually for existing patients or for a specific problem such as pain or a broken tooth. It is not the same as being taken on for treatment. One phone call establishes whether this school has one.

What if something goes wrong with the work later?

Schools generally stand behind treatment in the same way a practice does, and problems are reviewed by faculty. What differs is continuity: the student who treated you may have graduated. Ask what the policy is for remakes and repairs, and keep your treatment paperwork.

What should I bring to the first appointment?

Photo identification, your insurance or Medicaid card if you have one, a list of your current medications, and any recent X-rays or records from a previous dentist. Some schools also ask for proof of income. Allow far more time than the appointment length suggests.

Do I need a referral from another dentist?

Generally not for the general student clinic, which you can approach directly. Some graduate specialty clinics do want a referral, particularly endodontics and oral surgery, because they take the harder cases. Ask when you call which route applies to the treatment you need.

What happens if I have to cancel?

Missed appointments are taken seriously here, because a cancelled slot costs a student a graded case as well as costing the clinic. Several schools charge a fee or remove repeat no-shows from their patient list. Ask what the policy is at the start rather than after the first clash.

What a Teaching Clinic Is Like

Which clinic you are placed in decides what you pay. Student clinics take general work at the lowest fee, specialty clinics handle root canals and dentures for more, and the faculty practice is close to ordinary private pricing.

Expect a screening visit first, which decides whether your case suits the students and the teaching schedule rather than simply booking you in. Expect appointments of two to three hours as well, since the work is reviewed at each stage, and expect the clinic to slow down or close between terms.

Our guide to dental schools and teaching clinics covers the screening process, how the discount works on laboratory costs, and what to ask before the first appointment in more detail.

Before You Call

Patient clinics usually run separately from the school office, on their own line and sometimes at their own address. A few minutes on the phone saves a wasted journey.

  • Is the clinic open to the public right now, and taking new patients?
  • What does the screening appointment cost, and how long is the wait for one?
  • Which clinic would handle the treatment you need — the student clinic, a specialty clinic, or the faculty practice — and does it have its own waiting list?
  • What are the fees for that treatment, and do they include laboratory work for crowns or dentures?
  • Are X-rays from your own dentist accepted, and how recent do they have to be?
  • If the school cannot treat part of your case, where does it refer that work?
  • Are evening or Saturday appointments available, or is it weekdays only?

Accreditation

Status: Approval without Reporting Requirements, next reviewed in 2032. It reviews the program every few years against a national standard for teaching. Patient access, fees and waiting times are outside what it looks at.

Other Accredited Dental Schools in Missouri

Missouri has 3 accredited dental schools altogether. If this one is full or the wait is too long, the others are separate institutions with separate lists:

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