AOS MEMBERSHIP NEWS Advocacy is Important Component of Our Profession Thomas Jefferson once said, “Action will delineate and define you”. Your American Orthodontic Society was established for quality education AND advocacy for the GP and pediatric dentist who chooses orthodontics. How we ACT on BOTH missions defines our relevance to you and to our communities, and sets us apart from other associations to which you belong. Delivering superb education, recognized throughout the dental community, provides us greater voice in our advocacy. Conversely, our strong advocacy for the practitioner gains us attention and new members for our educational programs. The old saying, “one hand washes the other” is so true. Recently, our staff and volunteer leadership partici-pated for the third year with the Academy of General Dentistry’s “A Great Dentist Goes to Washington”. While there as a team, we met with congressional and senate members and staffers to make them aware of the issues that most directly impact our chosen profes-sion. I suggest you Google “Medical Device Tax” and Mitch Parker, DDS read about this portion of the AOS President healthcare legislation that is headed straight to your practice on January 1st, 2013. On your behalf, we talked with your legislators about the impact on the individual dental practice. On the local level in Texas, we’ve been working closely to reopen Medicaid doors for the GP closed by Health and Human Services. It’s an educa-tional process that is necessary for our national and state governments. It’s impossible for practitioners to carry their case individually, but as a professional soci-ety, we can act as your voice, and we are! My first intern position was in the American Dental Association PAC office in Washington DC. I learned early on of the importance of advocacy, and I still believe in it today! Mitch Parker, DDS 2012 Dr. Robert Gerety Scholarship Awardee Announced The Petroleum Club of Oklahoma City was the site of a luncheon March 9th during which AOS Executive Director Tom Chapman, Dr. Steve Graham of the AOS, Dean Steve Young, and Orthodontic Department Chair Dr. Frans Currier awarded the 2012 Robert G. Gerety Scholarship for Academic Excellence to Kristie Holman of the University of Oklahoma College of Dentistry. Upon graduation in May 2012, Ms. Holman plans to move back home to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Although her intention had always been to apply to an Oral Maxillofacial residency, her desire now is to become proficient in many areas of dentistry in order to provide a wide array of treatment options, including orthodontics, to her patients. Ms. Holman says one reason she chose to pursue a career in dentistry is the endless opportunities to serve her community it allows. She plans to continue partici-pating in free dental clinics and hopes to operate a free extraction clinic once a month. Also, having devel-oped a passion for teaching while in school, Ms. Holman would like to teach dentistry, possibly as a part time faculty member at a dental school. Awarded annually since 2000 by the AOS Founda-tion, the Dr. Robert G. Gerety Scholarship is proud to recognize outstanding academic achievement with an emphasis on performance in orthodontic course work. The AOS Charitable Foundation provides educational grants only through the generous support of our members. If you would like to know more about our scholarship program or assist by pledging funds, please contact our Executive Director Tom Chapman at (800) 448-1601. www.orthodontics.com May/June 2012 45
Journal of the American Orthodontic Society May-June 2012: Page 45
