Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Residency

Program: The Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Residency at the University of Nebraska Medical Center is a fully-integrated 72-month (6-year) MD/OMFS accredited program and is tied as the oldest MD/OMFS training program in the country, having started the same year as Harvard University's OMFS Program.
The UNMC OMFS Residency Program has a rich history of furthering the scope and training of its residents, and providing the highest quality of patient care. Supported by four full-time attending faculty with multiple additional affiliated faculty surgeons, the program prepares residents in the full-scope of oral and maxillofacial surgery and with the skills requisite to enter into fellowship, academic, or private practice positions.

Program Director:

Valmont P. Desa, DDS, MD, FACS 
Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery,
984125 Nebraska Medical Center,
Omaha, NE 68198-4125, 402-559-6445. 

Residency Program Coordinator: 

Becky Palensky
402.559.8390
bpalensky@unmc.edu

Division Administrator:

Tracy Hanzek
402.559.6771
tracy.hanzek@unmc.edu


Number of Residents Each Year:
Two (2)

Objectives: The objectives of the program are to:

Clinical Experience: The Nebraska Medical Center/UNMC Affiliated Hospitals, Creighton University, Boys Town National Research Hospital, and the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Omaha are the various sites for the surgical clinical experience. Thirty-six (36) months are devoted to clinical oral and maxillofacial surgery. There is a comprehensive didactic curriculum consisting of weekly seminars and grand rounds, clinical pathologic conferences, morbidity and mortality reviews, case reviews, oral pathology seminars, implant conference and journal club.

Program History: The UNMC oral and maxillofacial surgery residency program has been fully-integrated with the UNMC College of Medicine, MD Program, since 1971. As one of the two oldest MD/OMFS integrated training programs in the country it carries a strong relationship with colleagues within all disciplines of medicine, and provides OMFS residents the best opportunity to learn from experts in their fields. From 1971 to 1988 the program was five years in length. The first six-year class completed the program in 1994. The program adjusted to a 60-month program beginning with the 2002-03 entering residents; however beginning in July 2011, the program returned to a 72-month program, in an effort to provide additional months of surgical training and to compliment the expanding scope of oral and maxillofacial surgery. This has allowed our program residents to graduate at the top of their field in surgical experience. Throughout its history, the program has strived to incorporate state of the art surgical training with an unsurpassed surgical and medical education and training.

Didactics Curriculum:


To learn more about the residency program and application process in becoming a resident at the UNMC Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Residency Program, please click here