Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso welcomes opening course

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EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – Texas Tech University officials welcomed the opening class of the new dental school on Tuesday.

The group of 40 will begin their education at the school in the coming semester as the university seeks to train and serve the community with more dentists. The U.S. Department of Health has labeled El Paso with a shortage of dentists, according to a press release.

There is one dentist for every 4,840 inhabitants compared to the national average of one dentist for every 2,900 inhabitants. And more than 50 counties in West Texas don’t have dentists.

“With 42% of the first class coming from West Texas and border regions in Texas, we anticipate that after graduation, dental students will stay in the area to serve in the communities that supported them on their healthcare journey,” said Richard C. Black, Dean of the Hunt School of Dental Medicine.

“60% of the class describe themselves as bilingual or multilingual. This will also help our students prepare for culturally competent providers, ”he added.

Tuesday’s announcement goes hand in hand with another as the university receives a gift of $ 30,000 from the Marathon Petroleum Foundation to fund a Texas Tech Dental Oral Health Clinic that helps low-income and uninsured patients with the cost of dental services supported.

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