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GUEST EDITORIAL |
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| Year : 2007 | Volume
: 11
| Issue : 2 | Page : 47 |
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Research facilities in dental institutions of India: Need of the hour
TR Saraswathi
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, Meenakshi Ammal Dental College, Chennai, India
Correspondence Address:
T R Saraswathi
Department of Oral and Maxillo Facial Pathology, Meenakshi Ammal Dental College and Hospital, Alapakkam Main Road, Maduravoyal, Chennai - 600 095, Tamilnadu
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/0973-029X.37378
How to cite this article:
Saraswathi T R. Research facilities in dental institutions of India: Need of the hour. J Oral Maxillofac Pathol 2007;11:47 |
How to cite this URL:
Saraswathi T R. Research facilities in dental institutions of India: Need of the hour. J Oral Maxillofac Pathol [serial online] 2007 [cited 2021 May 17];11:47. Available from: https://www.jomfp.in/text.asp?2007/11/2/47/37378 |
It is heartening to observe that many private dental institutions are coming up in different parts of India. This is keeping pace with the population explosion, the growing awareness of the public regarding their dental needs, and the increasing interest shown by students to pursue a career in dentistry. Philanthropists who have identified this need have come forward to open up new dental institutions. Though these private dental institutions were started with the aim of providing basic dental education (BDS) to start with, most of them have expanded their educational facilities to provide postgraduation (MDS) and PhD programmes. Some of these institutions have been granted the status of deemed/ autonomous universities.
These achievements are laudable, but we need to examine the facilities that are made available for postgraduates to pursue innovative research activities. At present, the only research work carried out by the postgraduate student is the dissertation, which forms a part of the postgraduate programme. However, even for this, the students are forced to search for and identify research institutes and laboratories where they can carry out their research, as these facilities are hardly available in their own institutions. With the increase in the number of postgraduate students in the different specialties of dentistry, it is high time every dental institution conducting postgraduate courses set up its own central research laboratory. In addition, these institutions should invite assistance from experts in basic research, such as microbiologists, biochemists, and molecular biologists. Being in close association with established researchers in an in-house research facility will help postgraduate students save time and to develop innovative and analytical thinking.
Institutions which encourage research beyond that required by the routine dissertation, and those that spend on research infrastructure, should be identified by the Dental Council of India, which could probably recommend them to the Central Government of India for the award of annual research grants. Experts from basic medicine and the technical mainstream should be infused into dental institutions to encourage and standardize the research work. Only such measures will brighten the chances for committed dental research in the postgraduate dental institutions in our country.
With warm regards
Dr. T. R. Saraswathi
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