PDA ANNUAL AWARD WINNERS
PUBLIC SERVICE AWARD
DR. MIRIAM ROBBINS
( Outgoing president Dr. Cary Limberakis and Incoming president Dr. Ted Rockwell presented Dr. Miriam Robbins with the Public Service Award.)
Our 2025 Public Service Award winner has spent a significant portion of her outstanding career working to improve the oral health of the underserved, special needs population, and as a result of her exceptional efforts, she has brought national recognition to our state.
Dr. Miriam Robbins has made, and continues to make, a tremendous impact both directly for these patients and also indirectly through her education and advocacy efforts. Dr. Robbins is the Director for the Care Center for Persons with Disabilities at Penn Dental Medicine, where she treats patients and trains future dentists to provide expert oral care to patients who live with physical, development and intellectual disabilities.
Her expertise, honed over multiple appointments at hospitals, institutions and dental schools, has added greatly to the ability for many patients who are at greatest risk to get excellent oral care. At the same time, she is training the next generation of dentists and has developed a curriculum for treating patients with disabilities that serves as a model for others across the country. In nominating her for this award, Penn Dean Dr. Mark Wolff and Dr. Thomas Sollecito observed that many practicing dentists from both inside and outside of Pennsylvania seek Dr. Robbins for additional training through an immersion program in the Care Center. She is truly making a tremendous impact.
She has also held the position of president in both the American Academy of Oral Medicine and Special Care Dentistry Association. She continues to serve on the Commission on Dental Accreditation Predoctoral Education and serves as a test writing committee member for ADA’ s Integrated National Dental Examination.
It’ s clear to see she is tireless in her efforts to protect and enhance the oral health of all Pennsylvanians by improving access to care.
PDA is excited to recognize Dr. Robbins and honor her efforts to provide dental care for the underserved. It is my pleasure to present the PDA Public Service Award to Dr. Miriam Robbins. Congratulations!
Dr. Robbins’ acceptance remarks:
Thank you so much for this tremendous honor. I am deeply humbled to receive the Public Service Award and to be recognized by the Pennsylvania Dental Association for work that is both my calling and my privilege.
Throughout my career, I have been committed to improving oral health care for individuals with disabilities and complex health conditions— patients who are so often left behind by our health care system. At the Care Center for Persons with Disabilities at Penn Dental Medicine, I have the honor of working alongside an extraordinary team dedicated not only to providing compassionate, comprehensive care but ensuring that the next generation of oral health care providers have the training and skills necessary to treat these patients in their practices.
I want to especially thank Dean Mark Wolff for his visionary leadership in advancing oral health equity and ensuring that the care of underserved populations remains central to our mission. My chair, Dr. Thomas Sollecito for his unwavering support and encouragement. I also want to acknowledge my associate director, Dr. Alicia Risner-Bauman, my faculty colleagues and my staff, whose dedication, passion, and commitment make this work possible every day.
This recognition is not mine alone— it reflects the efforts of so many who believe, as I do, that every person deserves access to high-quality oral health care.
24 JULY / AUGUST 2025 | PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL JOURNAL