Leadership is about working with others, listening to others, and helping others.

I was just in Washington D.C. for the American Dental Association’s “Lobby Days,” where we go and speak to our senators and representatives and talk about issues that affect dental medicine nationally. There’s a lot of talk in Washington about the art of compromise – how it used to exist, where it went, and how to get it back. That’s what I think is really what leadership is all about. It’s about bringing diverse groups together. It’s about listening to them and working so that everybody can benefit.

To do this effectively, you need experience. I’ve been the President of the Dental Society of Western Pennsylvania and President of the Pennsylvania Dental Association. At the American Dental Association, I’ve been on three different councils: Communications, Liaison to the Council of Dental Benefits, and I’m currently the Vice Chair of the Council of Government Affairs.  I know the issues and the people and have a track record of bringing everyone to the table to get things done.

CALLED TO THE WORK

I got interested in dentistry because…I thought it was amazing to see the self-esteem boost you give people when you help them to smile. As a Board Certified Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon life can be quite hectic but it is also rewarding. I have found a certain satisfaction in diagnostic complexities and multifaceted treatment plans. Working with my dental colleagues throughout their spectrum of dental specialties and as a long time Director of a Seattle Study Club, I have benefited from interactive and multidisciplinary collaboration.

The best care comes from that interactive mutual alliance of like minds in cooperative care.

However, there are times of calm, and times of crisis. You can never get too comfortable.

I was the President of the Pennsylvania Dental Association during COVID, when the State Department of Health shut us down. If you were allowed to work, there were some very onerous regulations — which caused issues to our workforce, both to our hygienists/dental assistants and to our laboratories. So, I organized a Leadership Council with the Deans of the three Dental Schools in Pennsylvania, together with the Pennsylvania and American Dental Associations – as well as the Academy of General Dentistry, Pediatric Dentists, and the Dental Hygienists as we put together a united front to talk about what was reality, and what wasn’t. The State Health Department ultimately had to listen to such a dynamic and knowledgeable group and within two months, we pretty much all got back to work, because we were able to prove the necessity of what we were doing — that dentistry was (and is) a central part of health care. Working together was the key to changing the Health Departments response.

GIVING PENNSYLVANIA A VOICE

In architecture, the keystone locks an arch into place, allowing it to bear weight. Pennsylvania, the Keystone State, holds this nation together. We should have our voice heard at the national level. My platform is about:

• Providing a leadership role representing Pennsylvania at the American Dental Association.
• Helping to increase membership to our Tripartite organization.
• Continuing the mission of how Dental Medicine is an important part to systemic care.
• Advocating for our profession at all levels of government and to our dental colleagues as the Voice for our profession.