Student Professionalism and Ethics Association
Celebrating a Decade of Growth By: Aileen Jong, Immediate Past Executive Chair of National SPEA The last year has been a period of great growth and resource development for the Student Professionalism and Ethics Association in Dentistry (SPEA). As a national student-driven association, SPEA’s mission is to promote and support students’ lifelong commitment to ethical behavior in order to benefit the patients they serve and to further the dental profession. By fostering a safe, open environment for discussions about ethical challenges, SPEA helps prepare dental students to face these important decisions both in school and the real world. In partnership with the American College of Dentists, SPEA has further advanced these values in over thirty-five established chapters in the United States and Canada. The national executive board has worked diligently over the past year to create quality content and provide more resources for local chapters. These resources include a new chapter start-up kit, Meetingsin-a-Box documents, example cases and discussion questions, and videos focused on fundraising and membership and Chapter development. All of these are hosted on the national SPEA website at www. speadental.org, which was revamped at the start of 2020. Through the new website, members are able to gain a better understanding of how to start a new Chapter, bolster their membership 22 | ACD News | Winter 2020
and engagement, as well as brainstorm creative event ideas for their local community. In a time where everything is heavily virtual, SPEA’s strengthened online presence has proved integral in continuing the momentum of chapter growth nationally. Most importantly, SPEA celebrated its 10th anniversary this October and conducted its first ever virtual Annual Session. Despite the unique challenges a virtual conference posed, our team of dedicated officers was able to create a successful and enriching online experience. The conference was held throughout October and content was available for the duration of the month so students could view videos and gain CE credit at their own pace. This format allowed SPEA to reach an even wider audience. Virtual Annual Session featured incredible guest speakers Dr. Jessica Metcalfe, Dr. Jason Watts, and SPEA Directors Dr. Erik Klintmalm and Dr. Mike Meru. Dr. Metcalfe hosted a recorded webinar called “The Impostor Phenomenon,” sharing with attendees how to recognize its causes and effects, as well as ways to navigate and overcome feelings of inadequacy. In a candid interview, Dr. Watts discussed graduating and practicing in the era of COVID-19 and delved into the definitions of leadership and success. In the presentation “Connection Before
SPEA National Director Mike Meru signs affiliation agreement between SPEA and ACD.
Cavities,” Dr. Klintmalm focused on the foundation of healthcare and thoroughly examined the doctorpatient relationship. Dr. Meru’s video “Finding Your Why In Dentistry” discussed important topics such as recognizing motivations, goal setting, strengthening mental health, ethics in the real world, and much more. In addition to these guest speakers, a compilation video was created called “SPEA Pearls: Transitioning from Dental School.” This hour-long video featured short clips from young dentists and residents who are the “crème of the crop” - top academic performers, national leaders, and clinicians. SPEA sincerely appreciates everyone’s contributions to making Virtual Annual Session a success! Beyond the creation of these valuable videos, each Regent hosted a live breakout session with local chapter leaders to encourage dialogue and communication during Annual Session. These breakouts were great opportunities for members to connect and have a direct conversation about anything they might need help with locally. We also debuted our podcast, SPEA Speaks, where dental students bring a voice to ethics in dentistry. The first episode was a thoughtful discussion between national student leaders on the challenges COVID-19 has posed to dental schools across the
