Mastership
Mastership Certification is the third level of certification from the WCLI. Candidates who successfully meet all requirements will have demonstrated an advanced knowledge of lasers and their applications in dentistry. Also, Mastership candidates will have demonstrated complete clinical expertise through case presentations of moderate and complex clinical cases to two examiners.
Availability of Mastership Certification
Mastership certification is available at the WCLI Institute Super Symposium annual meeting only. Candidates must complete the required CE hours, submit their CE log, schedule a Mastership Clinical Simulation Exam and Mastership Written Exam, and pay any applicable certification fees at least 30 days prior to the WCLI annual meeting.
Requirements for Mastership Certification
- Earn Fellowship certification and practice for at least twelve months after you earn Fellowship Certification.
- Participate in sixty hours of continuing education related to laser dentistry. This is in addition to any hours earned for Fellowship certification. Use the official CE Log Form to document your continuing education.
- Pass the Mastership Written Exam with a score of 80% or higher.
- Pass the Master Clinical Simulation Examination with no prompting or assistance from the examiners.
- Document and present five clinical cases, including at least three moderate cases, one complex case, and one additional case of any complexity.
- Pay a certification and processing fee of $495 to the WCLI 30 days prior to the Mastership certification process.
Mastership Clinical Simulation
A clinical simulation examination will be conducted by one examiner. Candidates for Mastership certification will receive no prompting or assistance from the examiner and must be able to completely describe and demonstrate thorough knowledge of a number of critically important concepts related to the laser, its environment, and safety issues
You may download the Mastership Clinical Simulation Exam checklist, which will be used by the examiner during the Mastership Clinical Simulation Exam.
Mastership Case Presentation
Simple Cases
A single soft tissue treatment (e.g. a one-tooth gingivectomy) or a one tooth procedure (e.g. a single tooth restoration; or, for hygienist candidates, a simple gingivitis or Class I-II periodontal case treated with a diode laser).
Moderate Difficulty Cases
Moderate difficulty cases include multiple treatment sites using a single procedure (e.g. a quadrant gingivectomy) or one site treated with multiple procedures (e.g. a single tooth gingivectomy and cavity preparation; for hygienists, document one Class II-III).
Complex Difficulty Cases
Complex difficulty cases involve multiple soft-tissue/hard-tissue procedures on one site, or procedures conducted on multiple teeth or soft tissue sites with two or more procedures (e.g. desensitization and preparation for composite restoration of a quadrant of cervical lesions or dual wavelength endodontic treatment; for hygienists, document one Class III-IV case).
When presenting cases for Mastership certification, the candidate is required to give a PowerPoint of the documented cases to two examiners. The candidate is required to show thorough knowledge of the presented cases and demonstrate accurate diagnosis, treatment plan, accurate and applicable laser settings and parameters, successful treatment outcome and post-operative management.
Documenting Continuing Education for Mastership Certification
“Continuing Education,” as it is defined in the context of obtaining laser certification from the WCLI, refers to any combination of the following:
- Classroom instruction at an accredited (AGD PACE, ADA CERP, Academy of Laser Dentistry, or an equivalent international body) laser symposium, seminar, or other educational course with approved content specific to laser dentistry.
- Any hours spent preparing, modifying, or readying lecture material on laser dentistry for presenting at an accredited (AGD PACE, ADA CERP, or an equivalent international body) trade show, symposium, seminar, study group, or in a similar educational environment.
- Any effort put into publishing clinical content regarding laser dentistry in a dental trade journal. Generally, the article must be published in order to receive credit, but exceptions are allowed if an article is rejected for publication. These exceptions will be the decision of the WCLI Certification Committee.
All laser dentistry continuing education must be documented on a WCLI CE Log. Applicants will be responsible for accurately logging all Laser Dentistry CE hours for credit toward Fellowship or Mastership certification in the WCLI.