Page 6 - Bulletin Vol 28 No 3 - Sept. - Dec. 2023 FINAL

Message from the President

January will mark the end of my term as President of the Nassau County Dental Society. It
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will also complete my 55 year as a dentist. What are the lessons that I have learned and
what lies ahead for our profession?
The immediate problems that we face include a shortage of qualified dental personnel, the
introduction of AI, increased control by insurance companies, increased dental office
overhead and increased government intervention. Over the course of my career, I have
witnessed our profession confront and solve many of the problems that have occurred.
Our goal has been to practice dentistry to the best of our ability. Unfortunately, we have
had to confront issues that have interfered with our basic ability to practice dentistry.
Individually we cannot solve these problems but as a group we can meet with the various
entities that are involved and have influence. The lesson learned is to quote Helen Keller,
“Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much”.

One of the events that has given me great satisfaction and made me feel very special as a dentist is our “Give Kids
A Smile” event. The application to participate in the 2024 event is now online. The event is chaired by Dr. Schild-
haus, Dr. Brofsky and Dr. Schreck. I urge you to participate and share this special time with your colleagues. We
held a Las Vegas Night this year to raise funds to support the event. A great time was had by all and money was
raised to help offset the large increase in the cost of running GKAS which we face this year.
Recent grads and new dentists are facing many challenges. Exorbitant student debt, the expansion of DSO’s,
increased government intervention and the high cost of living are some of the difficulties new dentist face here in
Nassau County. We at the NCDS are deeply concerned with these issues and, with the help of Dr. Jay Fitzgerald,
have expanded our training sessions for new dentists. Dr. Daneille Recupero has been appointed as Chair of our
New Dentist Committee. We need your participation and help to meet these challenges. The author Adam Khoo
states “The greatest failure in life is the failure to participate in life.” Come join us.
Many of you have read about the recent data breach at Henry Schein. It is your responsibility to protect your
office data and patient records. It is best not to rely solely on a tech individual or service provider. This is your
responsibility. I urge you to read the ADA article on data protection at: https://adanews.ada.org/ada-news/2023/
march/how-to-protect-your-dental-practice-from-cyberattacks. We are in the process of setting up seminars to
help our members face these challenges.
I am most excited for the upcoming year. We have completed a comprehensive lecture schedule which includes
four dinners and lectures at the Inn at New Hyde Park. Dr. Blauzvern and the CE committee have arranged to
provide the lectures that are necessary for licensure. We have already scheduled our “Give Kids A Smile” event.
Our Board and our Advocacy committee are working to confront some of the issues that are challenging our ability
to practice dentistry the way we want to practice.

Our office staff headed by our Executive Director Dr. Eugene Porcelli is always ready to answer any questions. If
you have any issues concerning practice, participation in our society or professional issues contact our office.

In conclusion, this has been an incredible year for me personally. It has been both an honor and pleasure to act as
President of the Nassau County Dental Society. Working with a Board that is both knowledgeable and dedicated
to our profession has been a privilege. I would encourage each of you to come and share time with our Board. I
look forward to working with Dr. Schildhaus in 2024.

May you be granted all that you wish for in the New Year.

Respectfully submitted,

Steve Akseizer
2023 NCDS President

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