The Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Residency Program at the University of Puerto Rico: A Historical Perspective.

A former Spanish colony, Puerto Rico has been an unincorporated US territory since 1898 when Spain relinquished all claims over it under the terms of the Treaty of Paris. Half a century later, Universidad de Puerto Rico created the School of Dental Medicine, which began activities in 1957. In 1961, Lowell E. McKelvey became Dean of the School and in 1963 he established the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery advanced specialty education program following the US model. Created as a 36-month program with 2 residents per year, currently it is a 48-year program accepting 3 residents annually. The purpose of this paper is to review the history of this CODA-accredited program and to analyze the circumstances under which this program was developed.