Drs. Paula Friedman, Emeritus Professor in General Dentistry and, MDS past-president, and Kady Rawal, Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Restorative Sciences & Biomaterials, were awarded the Massachusetts Dental Society (MDS) Foundation Grant in November 2017. The Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (GSDM) team were awarded for their program, “Saving Senior Smiles.” A third member of their team, Dr. Andrea Richman, MDS past-president, was also a recipient.
Drs. Friedman, Rawal, and Richman are all members of the MDS Women in Dentistry Committee. In organizing the Saving Senior Smiles event, they enlisted the help of three chapters of the American Association of Women Dentists (AAWD). Julia Hadley DMD 18 was the representative from GSDM; while Kalie McCullouch represented Harvard University School of Dental Medicine and Sangita Murali represented Tufts University School of Dental Medicine.
The Saving Senior Smiles event was an effort to introduce future dentists to community dwelling seniors and vice versa. A short oral health education seminar was presented by the students at the very first ‘Saving Senior Smiles’ event held on November 14, 2017 at the Newton Senior Center. The event was well attended by Newton seniors and regulars at the Senior Center. The presentation was followed by a question and answer session; the attendees asked pertinent questions about their oral health which were answered by the geriatric oral health experts present.
The attendees left with a goody bag containing oral health products and a “What’s Hot” paper by the Gerontological Society of America that describes how oral health is an essential element of healthy aging. One lucky attendee won an electric toothbrush as a door prize. All attendees filled out a short survey about their oral health and feedback regarding the presentation. The surveys will be analyzed for a better understanding of the oral health needs and attitudes of community dwelling seniors.
“Congratulations to Drs. Paula Friedman, Kady Rawal, and Andrea Richman on receiving this prestigious honor,” said Dean Jeffrey W. Hutter. “The work of the MDS Women in Dentistry Committee is integral to advancing oral health initiatives in our communities and our state. Job well done.”
The next Saving Senior Smiles event is scheduled for December 4, 2017 at the Brookline Senior Center.