MouthWatch announced the four winners of its second annual Teledentistry Innovation Awards during the recent Greater New York Dental Meeting. Designed to highlight the ways that teledentistry is being implemented across dental care, the awards highlight providers who are reshaping the practice of dentistry while improving oral health, MouthWatch said.
“The Teledentistry Innovation Awards continue to grow each year thanks to expanded industry awareness and the increase of new implementations that are broadening the perception of what teledentistry is and what it can do to improve the delivery of patient care,” said MouthWatch founder and CEO Brant Herman.
Paul Glassman, DDS, MA, MBA, was the winner of the Teledentistry Pioneer category. He is the founder of the Virtual Dental Home Program at the University of the Pacific, which connects patients to dental care. He was recognized for his efforts in education and in supporting legislative changes that support teledentistry and improve access to care.
Paul Labbe, DDS, won the Dental Innovator Award. He uses teledentistry through the five locations of his Planet Dental practice in Laredo, Texas, to provide care to underserved children in his community. He and his team use teledentistry to conduct dental screenings at local schools and provide parents and guardians with diagnoses and treatment plans.
Hygiene Innovator Angie Stone, RDH, of Hylife Oral Health Alliance in Edgerton, Wisconsin, works with her team to provide onsite hygiene services to elderly patients in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and private homes. They use teledentistry to document each visit and to communicate with family members and dentists to ensure restorative care.
And, Oral Health Program Innovator Miquel McRae, RDH, CDHC, is the founder of ToothBUDDS in Pima, Arizona. The nonprofit employs dental hygienists to provide oral health education, screenings, cleanings, and fluoride treatments to children in local schools. Teledental technologies then connect those in need with a local dentist for care.
“We congratulate and thank this year’s Teledentistry Innovation Award winners for their commitment to using teledentistry technology to make a tangible difference in improving access to care and the state of oral health in their communities,” said Herman.
Nominations for next year’s awards are currently being accepted online.
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