4 minute read
What do you see on the horizon for the ACD and the profession?
Our Board, Section Leaders, and Fellows are represented below, but what do you think?
“As we look beyond 2023, the College and Foundation are financially stable with ample reserves, weathering well the current market’s volatility. Our former office in Gaithersburg was sold last fall in a real estate market that was not favorable for office space. Our existing projects continue to be fully funded, and new ones have been taken on such as an update of the Ethics Handbook and planning for an ethics summit on interprofessionalism.
The ACD and ACDF voluntarily undergo an audit each year, and the 2022 audit is underway. We have strengthened our internal controls and adopted updated accounting best practices, with our accounting now performed by an external organization. We have also started the strategic planning process, with Fellows both on and off the Board dreaming big and looking to the future of the profession and the College. This process will help us create a profile for our next Executive Director and aid the search committee, chaired by Dr. Bob Faiella, in selecting a new Executive Director. Although these are activities and projects happening now, led by current Fellows, they are bigger than any one person or group of people—together we are laying the foundation for advancing our mission well into the future.”
– Robert M. Lamb, ACD President
“What an exciting time for dentistry, dental professionals, and the patients we serve! We are emerging from the pandemic with a deeper appreciation for the importance of oral health to overall health and wellness. Emerging technologies including Augmented Intelligence will continue to help dentists and team members deliver more precise and consistent care to their patients. And the definition of medically necessary services has been broadened and Medicare can pay for dental services under various clinical scenarios including surgical procedures like cardiac valve replacement, organ transplants and cancer treatments. This is a vital step toward integrating oral health into whole-body health.”
– Terri Dolan, ACD President-elect
“As we look forward to 2023, we are still experiencing effects from the pandemic. We will carry on to manage inflation, dwindling insurance reimbursements, supply chain delays, and staffing difficulties.
It is critical we continue to instill ethics and professionalism especially in our younger, newer colleagues. Much too often I find that they have not been exposed to such high ideals as those of the College.
The ACD will model leadership behaviors to inspire them to navigate thru these challenging times.”
– George Stratigopoulos, Past Regent, Regency 7
“Staying relevant and influential in the world of dentistry today is important. The ACD continues to do its due diligence, and has renewed efforts to keep ethics and leadership as a critical part of the entire dental profession.”
– Joseph Crowley, At Large Regent, Past President of the American Dental Association
“The profession of dentistry is at a critical juncture (technological advancements, varying practice modalities, continual opening of new dental schools, nearly overwhelming escalating cost of dental education, Medicare and Medicaid dental benefit inclusion and/or expansion, acknowledgment of systemic racism in health care, etc). ACD has a true and rare opportunity to serve as a guiding light for not only dentistry, but for many of our colleagues and sister organizations healthcare professions wide. My hope is that we continue to answer the higher call of ethically leading the way, and being at the forefront of practice centering patient wellbeing and community trust.”
– Carlos Smith, President-Elect American Society of Dental Ethics, Associate Professor, Department of Dental Public Health and Policy & Director Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Director of Ethics Curriculum, VCU School of Dentistry, Member of the eJACD Editorial Board
“The National Dental Care Plan’s implementation in Canada coincides with major international healthcare reforms that seek to have Oral Health services (especially Tele Dental Medicine), integrate Universal Health Programs for greater accessibility by healthcare providers and patients alike. Its beneficial outcome, among others, is its potential to connect worldwide open-source multi-disciplinary healthcare AI driven Practice Based Research/Learning platforms, thereby proactively supporting the evolution of Dentistry in the digital era. Regulatory licensing bodies, Dental Orders and Colleges, ought to lead the profession in this direction by working in synergy with all e-Health contributors, including the industry. To this end, ACD is encouraged to continue to lead by prioritizing its ongoing consultations with all Oral Health stakeholders, including Patient Advocacy Groups.”
– Hubert Gaucher, ACD Quebec Section Chair
– L. Frank Baum, The Marvelous Land of Oz
“We cannot be so self-important to think it’s about what we see out there, what does the audience see out there.”
– Steven Chan, Past President of the College
