Dental Awards recognise exceptional service inside and beyond the profession
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- Published: Friday, 24 May 2024 10:12
- Written by Peter Ingle
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A recent flurry of dental awards have recognised the special contributions of members of the profession both in their chosen fields and beyond.
(Image: Incoming BDA President Richard Graham presents Mili Doshi with the Award for Excellence).
The BDA has introduced a new Award for Excellence, which aims to recognise colleagues at any stage of their career. The inaugural recipient of this award is Mili Doshie, Consultant in Special Care Dentistry Surrey and Sussex Healthcare Consultant in Dentistry Royal Hospital for Neurodisability.
GDP’s featured in other awards announced by the BDA. These included Fellowship medals for dental journalist and all round expert on both general and dental politics Michael Watson, and Ros Keeton, Chair of the BDA Benevolent Fund. Amongst other award recipients with a GDP background were Linda Greenwall, who received the John Tomes Medal, and Senior Dento-Legal Advisor, Bryan Harvey, who was awarded life membership.
The same week The College of General Dentistry (CGDent) announced that its prestigious President’s Award would go to Professor John Gibson, founder and CEO of The Canmore Trust.
Formerly known as the Deans Award under the previous Faculty of General Dental Practice UK (FGDP), it is given at the discretion of the College President to charities, dental professionals and other individuals who have made significant contributions to promoting and improving oral health or public health relevant to dentistry in the UK or internationally.
Announced during Mental Health Awareness Week, the award was the first of its type to be made by the College since it opened in 2021. It is in recognition of Professor Gibson’s work on both suicide prevention and postvention, the provision of support after someone dies by suicide.
John Gibson is Emeritus Professor of Oral Medicine at the University of Aberdeen, and Honorary Consultant in Oral Medicine to the British Army. He graduated in both medicine and dentistry from the University of Glasgow, where he also undertook specialist training in oral medicine and completed his PhD in orofacial granulomatosis.
In the early hours of Sunday 20 October 2019 his life, and that of his wife and family, was suddenly and cruelly changed when his beloved son Cameron, a newly qualified veterinary surgeon, died by suicide aged just 24. He had no known history of psychological distress and left no note to explain his decision – his death remains a mystery to those who knew and loved him. John and his wife, Isobel, have since dedicated their time to suicide prevention and postvention, particularly in the medical, dental and veterinary professions.
In 2022 they established The Canmore Trust with a mission to reduce the number of people who die by suicide, and to help the family and friends of those who have died by suicide. The charity works with communities, practices, workplaces, schools, colleges and universities touched by suicide, and provides 24/7 support to those who may need encouragement to stay in the world despite all the struggles and difficulties they are currently facing.
The President’s Award will be conferred by outgoing President Dr Abhi Pal in London on 20 June.
Announcing the award, Dr Pal said: “Dentistry can be isolating, stressful and extremely demanding, and we know that the profession is, like veterinary medicine, at a higher-than-average risk of suicide. But while the importance of mental well-being is increasingly being recognised, we all still have much to learn about how we can better support ourselves and each other, both professionally and in our wider lives.”
(Image: Michael Watson OBE, Fellowship Medal with outgoing BDA President John Milne).
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