This year ’ s SmileCon took place in Houston , Texas , in collaboration with the Texas Dental Association and the Greater Houston Dental Society .
Dr . Craig McKenzie , Dr . Kayla Klingensmith , Dr . Lauren Yap , Dr . Selena Nguyen at SmileCon Street Fest .
I had attended last year ’ s SmileCon in Las Vegas , Nev ., as my first ADA meeting , and had such a great experience there that I decided early on I would attend this next one .
The meeting kicked off with a comfy fireside chat with opening session keynote speaker , Dr . Brené Brown , and a moving , heartfelt speech from Dr . Cesar Sabates , now immediate past ADA president . Dr . Sabates ’ speech touched the attendees as he opened up about his cancer survival journey that took place in Houston . He shared how a fellow ADA member opened up their home and many other members supported him and his family throughout his difficult times . It was a heartwarming reminder of how the ADA is not only another organization that advocates for our dental profession , but a second family to support us in the ups and downs that life throws your way .
One of the biggest highlights of SmileCon was Dental Central . Dental Central was the location of variety of vendors and exhibitors where attendees collected goodies to take home , took advantage of show promotions , and tried out many new products - from scaling instrument scopes to patient home hygiene products to digital implant planning software . There was something to appeal to every member of the dental team .
If you needed a breather from the hundreds of vendors , there were many other amazing parts of SmileCon programming placed in small pockets of the exhibit floor . There was a wellness “ pocket ” in collaboration with Hope For The Day , which had educational materials , postcards to on-site mail a message of hope to loved ones , a coloring wall , and inspiration stones to take home . Other “ pockets ” that added to the vendor aspect of Dental Central included a dance floor area to learn line dancing , appetizer areas supplied with plenty of Tex-Mex snacks , a live podcasting room and a moon rock exhibit with NASA !
What I enjoyed the most were the ADA “ pockets ,” where the ADA booths and staff resided . I had the pleasure of personally meeting other ADA leaders and learning more about my membership benefits . This was especially significant for me as I had the opportunity to connect with several ADA New Dentist Committee members , who were so inspiring in the work that they do in organized dentistry . They offered their help with anything a new dentist would need in new dentist endeavors , which I appreciated greatly as I know it will help strengthen and motivate my work with the PDA New Dentist Committee . In addition , for those who have been interested in becoming more involved with the ADA but would not know where to start , this was the perfect opportunity to jump in with all of the help and resources that were present at the convention .
Dr . Karin Brian , Dr . Tami Brady and Dr . Selena Nguyen .
JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2023 | PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL JOURNAL 19