Thursday, June 10, 2004 TODAY

School of Dentistry news

• School of Dentistry faculty assist with new residency program in Armenia
• Judson Klooster, dean emeritus, School of Dentistry; Nathin Dinsbach, receive awards during International College of Dentists' dinner
• Dental student table clinic places third during CDA annual meeting
• School of Dentistry graduation

School of Dentistry faculty assist with new residency program in Armenia

The Loma Linda delegation together with local and international Armenian professionals, pose for a group photo following a private audience with Catholicos Karekin II.

The following story was contributed by William Heisler, DDS.

Charles Goodacre, DDS, MS, dean, LLU School of Dentistry (left), presents interactive learning materials developed at the School of Dentistry to Gary Kevorkian, DDS, assistant professor, orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics. The learning materials were a gift to the dental library, State Medical University, Yerevan.

Although separated by 12 time zones, faculty from Loma Linda University School of Dentistry and dentists in the Asia Minor country of Armenia were united the first week of April. Following several years of negotiation between the Armenian National Institute of Health (ANIH) and the Armenian Ministry of Health, ANIH has received approval from the Armenian government to establish a "Family Dentistry Residency," similar to LLU's International Dentist Program, to prepare Armenian dentists to provide comprehensive care. Development on the program began in 2002.

Previously, the only clinical training available to Armenian dentists after five years of medical university training was a one-year internship, usually followed by a specialty training program. An agreement signed in 2001 between School of Dentistry and the ANIH, headed by Derenik Dumanian, MD, provided that LLUSD would provide guidance and expertise in setting up this new program.

On April 9, Charles Goodacre, DDS; Ruthy Goodacre; William Heisler, DDS; Gary Kevorkian, DDS, MS; and Nishan Odabashian, DDS, MS, participated in the dedication of a state-of-the-art dental clinic that will serve for the clinical training segment of the program.

William Heisler, DDS (right), professor, restorative dentistry, LLU School of Dentistry; Charles Goodacre, DDS, MS, dean; and Dr. Goodacre's wife, Ruthy, pose with the newest Armenian mobile dental clinic. The mobile clinic, the second to be placed in operation in Armenia, will serve children and others in orphanages, summer camps, and villages where no other form of dental care is available, and is the result of a joint effort among the Armenian Dental Society of California, National Association of Seventh-day Adventist Dentists, and Rotary International.

During the opening ceremony Dr. Goodacre stated that the School of Dentistry is pleased to be associated with this excellent new program. He said this program represents a large step forward in the training of Armenian dentists to increase the availability and accessibility to quality dental care for the Armenian people. He went on to say that LLUSD is committed to continued cooperation with this program, and was pleased to announce a gift of $10,000 to be used toward the completion of the pediatric dentistry facility within the clinic. Armenian National Television covered the opening ceremony with reports on the evening news. Representatives from National government, the Armenian Dental Society, and other interested organizations attended the event. Mrs. Ordway, wife of the American ambassador to Armenia, was an honored guest.

Following a tour of the new clinical facility during which Drs. Goodacre and Heisler were interviewed by news media, the ANIH held a reception for those in attendance. As the guests were leaving they stopped to witness the dedication of a mobile dental clinic that will be used in the service learning component on the ANIH program, as well as by volunteer dentists and LLUSD students on clerkship assignment.

The mobile clinic, the second to be placed in operation in Armenia, will serve children and others in orphanages, summer camps, and villages where no other form of dental care is available. This $30,000 mobile unit was the result of a joint effort among the Armenian Dental Society of California, National Association of Seventh-day Adventist Dentists, and Rotary International. Dr. Heisler, with the support of his local Rotary Club, wrote the grant application to the Rotary Foundation and coordinated the project.

Additional official duties of the LLUSD delegation included a lecture by Dr. Goodacre to dental students and faculty at the State Medical University on principles of crown preparation and meeting with several government officials--Norayr Davidyan, minister of health; Artashes Toumanian, chief of staff of the president of Armenia; Ara-Ter Grigoryan, head of the state health agency; and Vilen Hakobyan, rector of Yerevan State Medical University.

Unofficial activities included a meaningful trip to Echmiadzin for a private audience with Catholicos Karekin II, head of the Armenian Orthodox Christian Church and spiritual leader of Armenians worldwide

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Judson Klooster, dean emeritus, School of Dentistry; Nathin Dinsbach, receive awards during International College of Dentists' dinner

During the International College of Dentistry, 13th district, annual dinner in Anaheim on April 16, Judson Klooster, DDS, dean emeritus, School of Dentistry, was presented the Lifetime Achievement in Dentistry Award. The same evening Nathan Dinsbach, fourthyear dental student, was named Student of the Year (LLU) by the American College of Dentistry. Pictured (from left) Arlene Klooster, Dr. Klooster, Nathan Dinsbach, and Nathan's wife, Alisha.

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Dental student table clinic places third during CDA annual meeting

Pictured (from left) fourth-year dental students Aaron Molen, Norman Carter, and Marcus Paulsen won third place in the California Dental Association (CDA) student table clinic competition during the CDA annual meeting in Anaheim in April. Their study, "Immediate Joint Space Changes After Rapid Palatal Expansion," won second place, laboratory category, during the School of Dentistry 2004 Alumni Student Convention in February. Dr. Molen will present the table clinic during the ADA competition in October, in Orlando.

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Thursday, June 10, 2004 TODAY

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