title: Oral surgery in the European Union: challenges of diversity in training and practice.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  At the crossroads of medicine and dentistry, oral surgery with orthodontics are the only recognised dental specialties by the European Union. The goal of our study is to evaluate the current state of oral surgery in Europe from its teaching to its practice, the hypothesis being that a notable diversity persists despite European Union harmonisation process.
  
  
  METHODS
  To understand the impact of this diversity applied to European Union freedom of movement and its ethical implications for the practice of oral surgery, English and French questionnaires were sent by email to universities and organisations delivering authorisation to practise in France, Germany, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom chosen based upon inclusion and exclusion criteria. An analysis of documents on these organisations' official websites was also conducted. Demographic information was obtained from the aforementioned organisations.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The profile of practising oral surgeons is different dependent on the country. The university and hospital trainings conform to European recommendations and span 3-4 years. European Board certification is not required. Continuing education is mandatory only in France, Germany and United Kingdom. As for curricula and scope of practice, no consensus can be derived.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is potential conflict of interest between European Union principles of freedom of movement and protection of all citizens, as member countries do not uniformly apply Directives and recommendations. A new survey of all European Union oral surgery programmes as well as organisations delivering authorisation to practise is necessary to implement across the board harmonisation of training and practice to insure patient safety in light of the migration of European Union practitioners.
authors.affiliation: Paris Descartes University, EA 4569: Medical Ethics and Legal Medicine Laboratory, Paris, France.
authors.forename: M N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Nasseripour
authors.affiliation: Paris Descartes University, EA 4569: Medical Ethics and Legal Medicine Laboratory Head, Paris, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hervé
authors.affiliation: Plastic, Reconstructive and Esthetic Surgery Department Head, Henri Mondor Hospital, Paris-Est Créteil Val de Marne University, Paris, France.
authors.forename: J-P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Meningaud
mesh_terms: D002568:Certification; D054521:Cultural Competency / Q000193:education*; D005062:European Union; D005602:France; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D013030:Spain; D013515:Surgery, Oral / Q000193:education* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden; D006113:United Kingdom
keywords: competency; ethics; european directives; freedom of movement; oral surgery