Introduction
　 　
The missions of this Institute are :
　 (1) Cultivate well-trained professionals and outstanding faculties
(2) Integrate basic science and clinical dentistry
(3) Target on management of major oral diseases
(4) Exploit researches on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of oral diseases.
(5) Develop novel biomaterials and products
(6) Become one of the distinguished research institute of oral medicine internationally
History & Teachers
　
 Department of Dentistry at the College of Medicine in NCKU was established in 1984 to deliver education and clinical training in oral medicine for medical students and postgraduate residency in the affiliated hospital. The Department had nine specialty divisions. In line with the rapid growth in biotechnologies in oral medicine, the University established the Institute of Oral Medicine in 2002 and offers curriculum for the degree of Master of Science. Two young assistant professors were recruited the next year with expertise in molecular medicine and biomaterials, respectively. Till now, the institute has a total of eight full-time faculties, eleven attending staffs with their respective clinical specialties. We also recruited joint appointed professors from cross disciplines including College of Medicine, College of Engineering, and College of Science.
Programs & Resources
　
 The Institute offers Master degree program for dental and non-dental students who are interested in clinical or basic sciences of oral medicine. The Department of Dentistry enables students to bring their learned academic knowledge to clinical practice and to perform innovative clinical trials with intramural and extramural research groups. Currently, there are three comprehensive research groups in the institute: the Oral Biology Research Group (OBRG), The Clinical Science Research Group (CSRG), and Dental Materials and Mechanics Group (DMMG). Core courses provided by the Institute are focusing on both the basic knowledge and the training of critical thoughts to perform scientific researches. The Institute and Department of Oral Medicine also offers courses that cover a broad spectrum of oral medicine and comprehensive clinical clerkships as well as internships for medical and dental undergraduates. The Institute is actively involved in hosting international students to perform high quality research in oral biology and nanoscience through TTT andIREUS programs and individual international students’ applications.

The Institute integrates cross discipline expertise to ensure high quality teaching and mentoring of student research training. The University course registration system also provided a wide selection of courses to promote independent learning. Two University level Centers, the Center of Bioscience and Biotechnology (CBB) and Center for Micro/nano Science and Technology (CMNST) has provided lecture courses in the summer session and a whole year schedule of comprehensive instrument hands-on training courses and certification. Integrated cross-discipline research teams with other Institutes of the University and international eminent research groups are encouraged and on their ways. The Institute is also heavily involved in the promotion of teaching and learning.
Field of researchers
　 The main research focuses of the Institute is to bring up translational research power of this comprehensive University toward a better understanding of the fundamental basis of the oral diseases and also novel strategies that promote clinical management of oral diseases. Current research themes covered critical issues from oral biology to material sciences. These include searching for clinical solutions based on better understanding of the mechanism of important regional oral diseases such as betel quit associated oral malignancies. The development of clinical solutions to promote diagnosis and therapy of oral diseases such as advanced functional dental materials, biomechanical characterization of soft and hard tissues and dental materials, cephalogram and other physiological analysis tools, and biomedical imaging and computer-aided maxillofacial surgery.

In the past few years, the institute has a significant promotion in many important aspects. These include the annual increase in scientific publications in both quantity and quality and overall research funds. Some of the joint research papers were selected as the cover story of the journal (Optic Letters) and many are in the top ranking journals of the disciplines. Our staffs were awarded for scientific researches from WHO and IADR committees.

In the future, we hope to:

(1)Recruit distinguished scholars and specialists

(2)Foster outstanding research talents, establish graduate PhD curriculum and part-time Master of Science degree

(3)Improve the quantity and quality of research, and focus on the advanced issues in oral medicine through innovation

(4)Promote international engagement, and actively join the global research of oral medicine.

(5)Translate the result of academic researches to clinical applications and industrial products.

　
　

TEL :(886)6-235-3535 ext 5814 FAX :(886)6-2359885
701 No1.University Road , Tainan City Taiwan ROC.
E-mail address : em75813@email.ncku.edu.tw