Topics at a glance: UTDB pediatric dentists have special experience at 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games … TAWD’s ‘Miles for Mina’ raises more than $4,200 …DH students volunteer at Ibn Sina clinic … Five receive Tebo Scholarships … Faculty, students try out haptics technology at UTDB … HSDA teaches oral hygiene at mayor’s wellness fair …Greater Houston Partnership Legislative Weekend … Need money for college? … Luck of the Irish Raffle

UTDB pediatric dentists have special experience
at 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games

UTDB Pediatric Department Chair Sanford “Sandy” Fenton, D.D.S., provides an oral screening for an athlete at the 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games in Idaho earlier this month. Fenton is a Special Olympics global clinical advisor.

Pediatric Dentistry Department Chair Sanford Fenton, D.D.S., is a global clinical advisor for Special Olympics, and he has just returned from the 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games held Feb. 7-13 in Idaho. He helped train 35 pediatric and general dentists who will become local clinical directors around the world. One of them was a colleague from UTDB, Graduate Program Director and Associate Professor Steven Hackmyer, D.D.S.

They were part of the team of dentists who provided dental screenings for the athletes, taught them about dental hygiene and nutrition, and fitted them with mouth guards. One athlete had an oral infection and needed antibiotics and a referral for oral surgery. It was a definite change from their usual routine at the UT Dental Branch.

FULL STORY

Friends, classmates and faculty members turned out Saturday for “Miles for Mina,” a fundraising walk in memory of the late Mina Rosenthal-Eames, a UTDB student who was a victim of domestic violence.

TAWD’s ‘Miles for Mina’ raises more than $4,200

In 2007, dental student Mina Rosenthal-Eames was fatally shot by her estranged husband on the eve of their divorce. To honor her memory, Mina’s classmates, friends and supporters at the UT Dental Branch created the Mina Rosenthal-Eames Fund for Patient Care. The endowed fund has grown steadily, thanks to individual donations and fundraising events like “Miles for Mina,” the Feb. 21 walk sponsored by the UT Dental Branch chapter of the Texas Association of Women Dentists. The Saturday morning event raised more than $4,200 for the fund, and donations are still coming in, said the organizers Holly Pavlick, Amber Garcia, Precious King and Erika Johnson. The four were classmates of the slain student, who would have graduated in 2010. FULL STORY.

UTDB dental hygiene students and alumni volunteered at the Ibn Sina Foundation. Pictured (front, from left) are the foundation’s marketing director Shahnaz Ajani, Nisa Hashmani, R.D.H.; Ushma Ramaiya, R.D.H.; (middle) Jessica Cabral, Jennifer Freeman, Laura Dosch, Connie DeLeon, Associate Professor Donna Warren-Morris, R.D.H.; Holly Boone, R.D.H.; (back row, from left) Danilo Francisco, Leslie Thompson, Jessica McCrorey, Kellee Wright, Sara Allen, Raha Naderi, Shirin Bakhitar and Alija Lozano. Not pictured were Clinical Assistant Professor Joanna Allaire, R.D.H., and students Chriszelda Rojas, Kim Le, Jairener Reyes, Charlene Cabler, Karen Wen, Tanya Miller, Fariba Ranjbaran and Seema Patel.

DH students volunteer at Ibn Sina clinic

Dental hygiene students from the UT Dental Branch went to the Ibn Sina Foundation’s Community Medical Center on Jan. 31 to provide sealants and prophylactic treatments for underprivileged children. The event was organized by two UTDB graduates, Nisa Hashmani, R.D.H. ('01), and Ushma Ramaiya, R.D.H. ('01), who volunteer at the clinic each month.

The Community Medical Center provides low cost medical and dental care to uninsured and indigent patients in Southwest Houston. The Ibn Sina Foundation is named for Muslim philosopher and scientist Ibn Sina (980-1037 CE), known to the world of medicine as Avicenna. The foundation was created in 2001 with a vision of bringing affordable, high-quality preventive health care to the immigrant and underprivileged communities in Houston.

Five receive Tebo Scholarships

The Dr. Heyl G. Tebo Endowed Scholarship has been presented for 2009 to (from left) Dennis Seager, D.D.S.; Carinn Domann, D.D.S.; Shane Tolleson, D.D.S.; Jason Beck, D.D.S.; and Lan Doan, D.D.S, who are pictured with Dean Catherine M. Flaitz, D.D.S. The scholarship is presented annually to advanced education students in memory of Heyl G. Tebo, D.D.S., former chairman of the Department of Anatomical Sciences at the Dental Branch. Beck is a resident in oral and maxillofacial surgery. The others are orthodontics residents. Photo by Brian Schnupp.

Faculty, students try out haptics technology at UTDB

Dr. Shlomo Lehavi of IDEA International,Inc., shows Dr. Ryan Quock how to use a virtual dental simulator. Photo by Rhonda Moran.

Dr. Shlomo Lehavi , chief executive officer for IDEA International, Inc., visited the Dental Branch Feb. 20 to demonstrate haptics technology in a virtual dental simulator that lets students get used to the feel of dental tools and procedures long before working with patients. The probe is designed to feel like a dental handpiece.

In Lehavi’s demonstrations, users had to guide the probe along a straight line and “drill” at the same time. The technology was co-designed and evaluated by the Harvard University School of Dentistry through research support from the National Institutes of Health. Dental Branch faculty members and students were invited to stop by and try out the system.

HSDA teaches oral hygiene at mayor’s wellness fair

Hispanic Student Dental Association members Alejandra Mosquera, Iven Gonzalez and Yudith Rodriguez participated in the New Year, New You Challenge Wellness Fair. Mosquera and Rodriguez are first-year dental hygiene students. Gonzalez is a third-year dental student and Dental Branch HSDA chapter president.

The UT Dental Branch Hispanic Student Dental Association participated in "The Mayor's New Year, New You Challenge Wellness Fair" at the Heights Community Health Center in collaboration with the Houston Department of Health and Human Services. At this event, dental and dental hygiene students provided oral health education and oral screenings in addition to disseminating clinic eligibility information.

The primary focus for this community service project was to increase oral health awareness and prevention by emphasizing the importance of dental sealants in children and teens. Specific referrals were given for several dental clinics in the Houston metropolitan area where reduced-cost dental treatment may be obtained. Approximately 80 patients were seen and given toothbrushes, toothpaste samples and floss after being shown how to clean and take care of their teeth properly.

Dean Catherine Flaitz, D.D.S.,(left) visits with Harris County Psychiatric Center Chief Administrator Lois Moore (center) and state Rep. Ellen Cohen at the Greater Houston Partnership’s Legislative Weekend.

Greater Houston Partnership Legislative Weekend

The UT Health Science Center at Houston sponsored a luncheon for Texas legislators Feb. 7 in connection with Greater Houston Partnership Legislative Weekend. Among legislators who attended were state Sen. Dan Patrick, Rep. Bill Callegari, Rep. Ellen Cohen, Rep. Aaron Pena, Rep. Rob Eissler and Rep. Charlie Howard. UT System Regents Janeice Longoria and Jim Dannenbuam were also at the event, which included a tour of the Texas Medical Center.

Need money for college?

If you have a high school senior who is planning to attend college, please go to the University Classified Staff Committee scholarship application Web site and download the application. The application must be received by March 13. The scholarship is for children of classified staff members at the UT Health Science Center at Houston. For more information, contact UCSC Representative Trish McFarland at Ext. 4105, or Patricia McFarland.

Luck of the Irish Raffle

The Dental Branch Employee Relations Committee is raffling off a gift basket that includes at $25 gift certificate. Tickets are 50 cents each or three for $1. The drawing will be at 12:15 p.m. Thursday, March 12 in the 1st floor lobby. Get tickets from any ERC member, including Loraine Alexander, Rubie Armelin, Mary Baines, Nancy Bass, Mamie Ellis, Cecilia Garza, Dorothy Roberts-Goff, Kathleen Henshaw, Ed Kelly, Ronda Lowe, Kimberly Magee, Scott Makins, Sandra Miller, Joe Morrow, John O’Black, Barry Rittman, Ella Simmons, Louise Stacey, Plechette Turner and Sandra Watkins.