Policy, objectives, and implementation
- Section 2 provides for regulation, control, and supervision of the practice of dentistry in the Philippines.
- Section 2 provides for licensure examinations for graduates of recognized dental schools for purposes of registration.
- Section 2 regulates and standardizes dental education.
- Section 2 promotes and develops dental research in the country.
- Section 2 establishes penalties for infractions or violations of the Act and for violations of other laws, rules, and regulations authorized under the Act.
- Section 3 creates three agencies to implement the Act: (a) Board of Dental Examiners, (b) Council on Dental Education, and (c) Council for the Advancement of Dental Research.
Board of Dental Examiners powers
- Section 4 provides that the Board of Dental Examiners has five members appointed by the President of the Philippines from candidates certified by the Philippine Dental Association and/or any other bona fide dental association, upon recommendation of constituent chapter societies or affiliate organizations.
- Section 4 requires the Board members’ appointments to be subject to confirmation by the Commission on Appointments.
- Section 5 sets qualification requirements for Board members at the time of appointment:
- Must be a natural-born citizen of the Philippines and actually resident thereof.
- Must be a duly registered dentist in the Philippines.
- Must have at least ten years of practice of the profession.
- Must not be a member of the faculty of any school/college/university where dentistry is taught, and must have no direct or indirect pecuniary interest in such institution.
- Must not be connected with any business enterprise, firm, or company engaged in buying, selling, or manufacturing dental goods, equipment, materials, or supplies.
- Must be a member of good standing of the Philippine Dental Association and/or any other bona fide dental association for the last five years.
- Section 6 fixes a five-year term, with these appointment rules:
- Not more than one member shall be appointed for the full term within the same calendar year.
- Appointments shall be made to fill existing vacancies only, so that the term of one member expires every year.
- The member serving the last year of the term automatically becomes chairman, and shall not be entitled to succeed himself immediately after expiration.
- Section 8 allows removal of any Board member (including the chairman) for: incompetency or continued neglect of duty; commission or toleration of irregularities in examinations; or unprofessional dishonorable conduct, after a proper administrative investigation.
- Section 9 vests the Board with authority, conformably with the Act, to:
- Issue, suspend, or revoke certificates of registration for the practice of dentistry, or reissue the same, subject to approval of the President of the Philippines.
- Administer oaths.
- Investigate violations of the Act or other laws and regulations within the Board’s jurisdiction.
- Issue summons, subpoena, or subpoena duces tecum under the chairman’s hand and the Board seal to compel attendance of alleged violators and witnesses.
- Visit dental schools to determine compliance with minimum requirements prescribed by law and/or the Council on Dental Education.
- Look into conditions affecting the practice of dentistry and adopt or recommend proper measures to advance the profession, maintain ethical and technical standards, and enforce the Act.
- Section 10 requires the Board to promulgate and adopt rules and regulations necessary to implement the Act, especially on examination conduct; custody and correction of examination papers; registration of dentists; and enforcement of the Code of Ethics—subject to approval of the Commissioner of Civil Service.
Board organization, secretary, and reports
- Section 7 sets Board compensation: each Board member receives ten pesos per capita of the candidates examined, and the chairman receives no extra compensation.
- Section 11 provides that the secretary of the Boards of Examiners under Republic Act Numbered Five hundred forty-six shall also be the secretary of the Board of Dental Examiners.
- Section 11 requires the Civil Service Commission to keep all Board records and minutes of deliberations and proceedings, including examination papers and other confidential documents, under the secretary’s direct custody.
- Section 11 mandates the secretary to keep a complete register of all certificate holders, indicating: name, sex, age, date and place of birth, post office address, school/university graduated, date of graduation, and date the registrant passed qualifying examinations.
- Section 12 requires the Board to submit an annual report within sixty days after the close of each fiscal year to the President of the Philippines, including: detailed account of proceedings; an up-to-date register of dentists indicating private practice and government service; and recommendations.
Licensing, exams, registration rules
- Section 13 bars practice: unless specifically exempt and authorized by the Act, no person may engage in the practice of dentistry in the Philippines without a certificate of registration issued by the Board after successfully passing the required qualifying examination.
- Section 14 defines “practice of dentistry” to include, for a fee, salary, compensation, or any reward paid to the person or through another, or even without compensation:
- Performing any operation or part of an operation upon the human mouth, jaws, teeth, and surrounding tissues.
- Prescribing drugs or medicines for the treatment of oral diseases and lesions.
- Correcting malpositions of the teeth.
- Section 14 excludes from the definition:
- Artisans or technicians engaged only in mechanical construction of artificial dentures or fixtures and other oral devices, as long as none of such procedures is done inside the patient’s mouth.
- Students of dentistry undergoing practical training in a legally constituted dental school or college under direction and supervision of a member of the faculty duly licensed to practice dentistry in the Philippines.
- Registered dental hygienists serving as dentists assistants who perform oral prophylaxis and other procedures permitted by the law governing dental hygienists.
- Section 15 provides registration exemptions for:
- Commissioned dental officers of the army, navy, and air forces of any foreign country whose operations are permitted by the Government, while rendering service for members of those forces only.
- Dentists or oral surgeons from other countries invited for consultations or demonstrations, limited to specific assigned tasks.
- A previous authority from the Board is required for consultations/demonstrations, with the Board discretion to determine duration, but not exceeding thirty days.
- Section 16 requires licensure examinations twice a year in Manila:
- The first exam is held not earlier than two months nor later than three months after termination of the school year.
- The second exam is held six months thereafter.
- Examinations are subject to approval of the Commissioner of Civil Service.
- The Board must publish (or cause publication of) exam dates or changes at least ninety days before the scheduled examination.
- Section 17 provides admissions requirements for licensure applicants:
- Must be a citizen of the Philippines.
- Must have good moral character.
- Must have finished at least a two-year pre-dental course meeting minimum requirements of the Council on Dental Education.
- Must hold the degree of either Doctor of Dental Medicine (D.M.D.) or Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S.), or equivalents, conferred by a recognized legally constituted university/college/school/institute.
- Section 18 sets the examination form and subjects:
- Licensure exams include written and performance tests.
- The Board determines and prescribes the scope, considering teaching plans and educational standards of state and private dental colleges.
- The exam includes the listed subjects: general anatomy; oral anatomy; general histology; oral histology and embryology; general pathology; oral pathology; general physiology; oral physiology; pharmacology; microbiology; biochemistry; oral diagnosis and treatment planning; oral surgery; anesthesia; dental roentgenology; periodontics; endodontics; nutrition; dental materials; restorative dentistry; prosthodontics; orthodontics; public health dentistry; dental jurisprudence; dental economics; ethics; and private management.
- The Board must prepare and publish the schedule of subjects in the written and performance tests, approved at least two months before the examination date where they will be used.
- Section 19 requires the Board to report ratings within one hundred days after the last day of examination to the Commissioner of Civil Service, who with recommendations submits results to the President of the Philippines for approval and release.
- Section 19 imposes a Board compensation consequence: failure to report within the specified time causes forfeiture of fifty percent of the compensation due the Board members for that examination.
- Section 20 governs issuance of certificates of registration:
- Certificates are issued upon Board recommendation to applicants whose ratings are approved by the Commissioner of Civil Service and the President of the Philippines, and who pay the required registration fee, after satisfying all requirements in the Act.
- No certificate is issued to applicants who have not reached age twenty-one.
- Each certificate must show full name, serial number, and bear signatures of the chairman and members of the Board, the Commissioner of Civil Service, and the secretary of the Board, authenticated by the Board’s official seal.
- Issuance serves as evidence that the person named is entitled to rights and privileges of a registered dentist while the certificate remains unrevoked or unsuspended.
- Section 21 sets fees: sixty pesos examination fee