The 36th Annual Orientation Seminar for student clinicians participating in the 2005 ADA/DENTSPLY Student Clinician Program took place on Friday, October 7 in Salon III of the Grand Ballroom of the Westin Philadelphia Hilton. A Reception began at 5:30 PM and the Seminar Program took place at 6:30 PM.

As it has been structured in years past, the 2005 Orientation Seminar was designed to bring the participating student clinicians together prior to their clinic presentations on Saturday morning. Students were initially afforded an opportunity to meet their counterparts from elsewhere in the country and around the world in a relaxed and congenial atmosphere. They received a review of the rules and regulations that would govern the judging of their demonstrations the following morning and were also fully informed about the association's history, goals and objectives. The Orientation Seminar also served as the forum for the presentation of several important SCADA Awards.

Dr. Michael C. Alfano, SCADA President, opened the program with a few words of welcome. He next introduced the SCADA Officers and Members of the Board of Governors and turned the program over to our Corresponding Secretary, George Rhodes.

Mr. Rhodes first welcomed the Top Prize Winners in other recent DENTSPLY sponsored Student Clinician Programs held elsewhere in the world. They each received a travel prize to the United States to attend the 146th Annual Session of the American Dental Association at Philadelphia, courtesy of the Company. The international guests were scheduled to re-present their winning clinics on a non-competitive basis along with all U.S. students during the open clinic presentation on Saturday afternoon and again with the six U.S. winners on Sunday morning.

The 15 international winners included: Ms. Jamel Noronha Salomao from the Federal Fluminense University in Brazil; Ms. Jenny Hui from the University of British Columbia in Canada; Dr. Matthieu Meyer from the University of Bordeaux in France; Mr. Tim Constantin Nolting from the University of Münster in Germany; Ms. Aparna Grover from the HP Government Dental College and Hospital in India; Ms. Sarah Reksodiputro from the University of Indonesia in Southeast Asia; Mr. Masato Unami from the Nippon Dental University in Japan; Mr. Robert Rutgers from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands; Mr. Hadleigh Clark from the University of Otago in New Zealand; Mr. Riann Mulder from the University of the Western Cape in South Africa; Ms. Sun-Hong Min from the Seoul National University in South Korea; Ms. Hsuan-Huiand Kuo from the National Yang-Ming University in Taiwan; Ms. Pasupen Kosalagood from the Chiang Mai University in Thailand and Ms. Elidh Morgan and Ms. Nadia McMinn from the Dundee Dental School in the United Kingdom.

Mr. Rhodes then introduced Dr. Paul F. Kattner, Chairman of the Council on ADA Sessions. Dr. Kattner offered greetings to the participants on behalf of the American Dental Association and offered personal words of encouragement to each of them.

The next speaker was James Donovan, Director of the Council on ADA Sessions. Mr. Donovan offered a brief review of the table clinic rules and regulations and concluded his presentation by conducting a question and answer session.

SCADA's Secretary, Dr. Janet Harrison, was introduced next and presented a description of the association and our activities. She informed the group that the association was formed in 1959. She also explained that they were now taking part in what had since become an international program as 17 DENTSPLY Sponsored Student Clinician Programs are now routinely conducted in some 34 countries and one territory in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa.

Dr. Harrison described SCADA's objective as encouraging efforts to increase the quality of and participation in school, local, state and national Student Clinician Programs. She explained that we achieve this objective by working in four specific areas. First, by encouraging active participation in the program by all dental schools. Second, by assisting both students and faculty in upgrading the quality of table clinics. Third, by providing assistance to the dental schools in planning, programming and judging and fourth, by helping to orient and educate individual students toward successful participation in the Program.

Dr. Harrison closed her remarks with a challenge to the student clinicians. She encouraged them to become active in SCADA with the promise of a reward “by helping to provide others with the positive experience you are now enjoying,” she said.

George Rhodes, our Corresponding Secretary, returned to the podium and addressed the group with warm words of welcome from DENTSPLY where he serves as Vice President for Professional Relations and Corporate Communications. Mr. Rhodes also discussed the DENTSPLY, SCADA and ADA relationships and reviewed several details surrounding the Saturday evening Awards Program.

The next speaker was past President Dr. Alex C. Salinas who served as Chairman and Judge for this year's Master Clinician Program. Dr. Albert Whitehead from Nova Southeastern University joined him as a Judge. This program was conducted from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM on that Friday at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. It exists to offer SCADA Associates an opportunity to remain active in the association by showcasing their continued interest in research with the presentation of table clinics.

Dr. Salinas explained that those who participated in the Master Clinician Program represented the geographic diversity of SCADA. Participants included, not only those from the United States, but from Germany as well. The topics presented covered the gamut, including basic sciences, dental economics, preventive dentistry, removable prosthodontics and restorative dentistry. He then announced that the Grand Prize Winner in the 2005 Master Clinician Program was Dr. Yuriy Malyk whose clinic was on “pH-values at different dentinal sites after irrigation of root canals with four different solutions and placement of calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) or calcium peroxide (CaO2).” Dr. Malyk represented the University of Munich in the 2004 Student Clinician Program in Germany.

President Alfano was next on the agenda. He reviewed the history of the Henry M. Thornton/ SCADA Fellowship Fund for graduate study in dentistry and told the guests that the association had awarded more than $55,000 in Fellowships grants since 1976. He then announced the 29th consecutive grant and the 14th for $2,500 would be awarded to Dr. Takashi Komabayashi.

Dr. Komabayashi represented the Hiroshima University in the 1997 Japan Dental Association/DENTSPLY Student Clinician Program. He received his dental degree the next year and in 2002 he graduated from the prestigious Ph.D. program in Dental Materials Research at the Tokyo Medical and Dental University. The following year he entered the International Dentist Program at the University of California at San Francisco, an advanced standing D.D.S. program for overseas - trained dentists. He graduated in June of 2005 and is now enrolled in a 36-month combined program leading to a Certificate of Proficiency in Endodontics and a Master of Dental Science degree with the Department of Endodontology at the University of Connecticut to which this Fellowship will be applied.

Following that presentation, Dr. Alfano announced that the Board of Governors had selected Dr. Joel H. Berg to receive the 2005 Alan J. Davis/SCADA Achievement Award. Dr. Berg represented the University of Iowa in the 1980 ADA/DENTSPLY Student Clinician Program. He is currently the Lloyd and Kay Chapman Chair for Oral Health at the University of Washington School of Dentistry, Department of Pediatric Dentistry. He is also Clinical Assistant Professor at The University of Texas, Houston Health Science Centre-Dental Branch, Department of Pediatric Dentistry. He was formerly Vice President of Clinical Affairs for the Philips Oral Healthcare Corporation.

Dr. Shuntaro Kuroda from Tokyo, Japan was introduced as SCADA's incoming President. He closed the evening program by acknowledging the fine work of our President, Dr. Alfano, with the presentation of the SCADA Past President's Award.

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