The overall goal of this Development Program is to develop a detailed plan for a Comprehensive Oral Health Center (COHC) under the broad theme of adaptation to inherited and acquired deformities and disorders of the craniofacial region. The COHC will be based On a consortium between Baylor College of Dentistry, the University of Texas-Southwestern Medical Center, Texas A&M University, Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children, Baylor University Medical Center, Children's Medical Center of Dallas, and the Dallas Museum of Natural History. A Planning Committee and external Scientific Advisory Board will guide the Development Program. Biological, environmental, and psychosocial components of craniofacial disorders will be addressed in a broad multidisciplinary context, and will focus on prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of craniofacial disorders as well as educational/training Opportunities from elementary through postgraduate-professional levels. A formal strategic planning process and series of four strategic planning workshops will be the primary mechanism for development of required COHC components. Workshop 1 will solidify the mission and scope (Aim l) and the organizational infrastructure of the COHC (Aim 2). Workshop 2 will focus on the proposed research base of the COHC (Aim 3) involving development and repair of skeletal tissues and teeth, (b) development and regeneration of neural tissues, and (c) biobehavioral factors associated with chronic pain and TM disorders, emphasizing the impact of environmental toxins in the Texas/Mexico border on craniofacial birth defects. Pilot studies of a novel animal model and of integrative research projects will be designed and initiated using funding from the Center for Craniofacial Research & Diagnosis. The third strategic planning workshop will focus on (a) demonstration-outreach programs (Aim 4), (b) early science education (Aim 5), professional training (Aim 6), and (c) leverage of COHC funds (Aim 8). Consideration of the resources necessary to support administration, research, demonstration-outreach, and education-training (Aim 7) will occur at each workshop. The fourth strategic planning workshop will focus on evaluation and outcomes assessment of pilot research studies and feasibility studies on novel programs dealing with early science education and diagnostic/epidemiological telecommunications from the Rio Grande Valley area.
