How a Professor Is Bridging the Gap for Better Patient Dental Care

Mahnaz Fatahzadeh saw many cases of advanced oral cancer that arrived too late.

Aware of barriers to accessing oral health care, the professor of oral medicine at the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine wondered what she could do to facilitate early diagnosis and reduce her patients’ pain.

She found the answer in collaboration.

“I felt part of the reason patients are falling through the cracks is because there is a knowledge gap,” Fatahzadeh said. “Even though oral health screening is simple and takes little time to perform, it is often not a priority in primary care. This missed opportunity, in part, reflects minimal oral health content and insufficient emphasis on mouth-body connection in the nondental health profession curricula. And this gap is even more relevant for patients burdened with oral disease who don’t have dental insurance.”

Her mentor and former faculty member Arnie Rosenheck, an avid proponent of oral cancer screening, encouraged her to roll up her sleeves and get involved. Being a stomatologist, Fatahzadeh developed oral health modules tailored to the needs of various health profession programs within Rutgers. Her goal to provide future health care providers with foundational knowledge about oral health and disease.

Fatahzadeh’s efforts over the past two decades haven’t gone unnoticed. She received the 2025 Rutgers Health Distinguished Interprofessional Clinical Educator Award, nominated by colleagues from multiple health professions schools throughout the university.

“I feel honored and grateful,” said Fatahzadeh.

“It is through collaboration that the best health care can be provided to our patients,” said Claire O’Connell, associate professor and director of didactic education for the Rutgers School of Health Professions’ Physician Assistant Program. “Oral care is vital to overall health. The Physician Assistant Program embraces a humanistic, patient-centered model of care. Dr. Fatahzadeh exemplifies this in her teaching and practice. She is an excellent clinician and an exceptional role model.”

The Physician Assistant Program was the first place Fatahzadeh approached to offer her oral health module back in 2004.

“They were highly receptive to this idea,” Fatahzadeh said.

She taught students how to perform oral health screenings, what signs to look for, how oral and systemic health intersect and who to refer the patients to. Other schools came on board to share Fatahzadeh’s modules to their students, including Rutgers’ medical and nursing schools.

“We must work together,” Fatahzadeh said. “We cannot have a piecemeal approach to patient care, and the relationship between medical and dental providers should be bidirectional.”

With that in mind, Fatahzadeh trains her students at Rutgers School of Medicine with the same understanding.

“I tell my dental students, ‘You are an oral physician. Yes, you restore the dentition, but your responsibility goes far beyond that.’” She teaches them to screen for undiagnosed or poorly controlled medical conditions, make appropriate referrals, and contribute to better health outcomes. She expects her students to recognize oral manifestations of diabetes, celiac, Crohn’s, and other systemic diseases and to engage in health promotion activities.

Fatahzadeh also has been a supporter of the School of Medicine’s SPICE program, launched by Vice Dean Kim Fenesy, to provide interprofessional education projects spanning five schools of health profession and the school of social work within Rutgers as well as Essex County College Dental hygiene program. SPICE weekly collaborative care conferences are based on clinical vignettes developed by Fatahzadeh and culminated in a recent article in the Journal of Dental Education.

Fatahzadeh hopes to broaden her reach and her modules to include clinical exposure for a more impactful learning experience.

“There has to be more communication, collaboration, and interaction,” she said, “between health care professionals in the interest of patient care.”