Page 5 - REVISED GP Fall 2021 - ready for posting

From the Regional Director

Seung-Hee Rhee, DDS, MAGD
Highlight #4 – Inspiration
Howdy! From Austin, TX The keynote speaker, Scott Burrows, is a survivor of a horren-
dous automobile accident at age 19 that left him paralyzed from
The vibrant city of Austin, TX was the site the chest down and was diagnosed a quadriplegic. He floored ev-
of AGD Annual Scientific Meeting from eryone when he got up from his wheel chair and started walking
June 9 - 12, 2021. Thousands gathered af- across the stage! He made the impossible possible with vision
ter a long hiatus to greet old friends, learn and determination.
new things, and to cautiously return to
the normal life that we took for granted. Highlight #5 – Our Fellows, Masters, and LLSRs
While many of our members were able to attend, many could not Our 2020 and 2021 Fellows, Masters and LLSR inspire and moti-
for various reasons. So for those who were not there, let me share vate us with their commitment to lifelong learning to better serve
with you my seven highlights of AGD 2021 in Austin, TX! our patients. Congratulations!

Highlight #1 – Seeing and hugging old friends. Highlight #6 – What to eat when you are in Texas? BBQ, of
The joy of seeing my dear friends’ smiling faces and actually be course!
able to touch and hug them was truly a gift. It was so good to see Tender, juicy brisket that you can cut with your fork. Need I say
my AGD friends from all over US and Canada – safe and sound more?
– but I was especially glad to see my friends, Abe and Ira, from
NY. The cherry on top was running into my former NYU student, Highlight #7 – Diversity and Inclusion
Dr. Joel Gomez! Did you know that AGD now offers sign language at our CE
courses to the hearing impaired? I was moderating a course and
Highlight #2 – Stony Brook Students Rule! it was the coolest thing ever! I heard that with everyone wearing
Thanks to the hard work by Diana Kim, President of AGD Stu- the mask during the pandemic, it was especially hard for the hear-
dent Chapter at Stony Brook, 37 students from SB came to Aus- ing impaired because they were unable to read lips.
tin. They dominated the New Dentists Lounge and their enthu-
siasm was highly contagious! Read Diana Kim’s article in this There were hundreds of things that made the AGD 2021 a very
issue for more details about our student members. special meeting: The exhibitors, AGD Foundation Oral Cancer
Screening, and Texas hospitality to name a few. But it was our
Highlight #3 – You CAN teach an old dog new tricks. MEMBERS whose dedication to the AGD that made this meeting
The high quality CE offerings at AGD meetings are very well possible and were the true highlights of AGD 2021. Stay safe,
known. Many of the courses sold out very quickly. Note to self: everyone, and hope to see y’all at AGD 2022 in Orlando, FL!
Sign up during Early Bird Registration next time.
From the Executive Director

Paula Bostick, Executive Director “mandated” courses required by the state. The members respond-
ed by taking advantage of those free and low-cost webinars, and
We Are Almost There we are truly grateful.

2020 - I thought I would never, in my lifetime, 2021 - With the introduction of vaccines and the public readiness
experience a pandemic. The thought never to participate in getting vaccinated, we can slowly begin to return
crossed my mind. Now one year later, I can to normal but with a twist. Precautions will still be in place to
slowly see the rainbow on the horizon. First, I assure that returning to in person learning will be safe at the New
would like to thank our loyal membership for York AGD home office. The majority of our lectures will be webi-
the support shown during the pandemic. As an nars and the learning center will be used for hands-on participation
organization faced with the challenge of stay- learning.
ing connected with our members and keeping
the doors of communication open to help in The 2021 AGD Scientific Session returned with in-person learning
any way we can to aid our members with COVID-19 updates as and exhibits in Austin, Texas. We are looking forward to getting
they unfolded. back to providing oral health screenings and working with Colgate
to provide screenings at the schools and summer camps. The goals
Things were looking a little grim at one point, with the closing of of this organization have not changed, we are still “The Premier
dental practices except for emergencies, I was in complete shock Organization of General Dentists”. Every dollar a member spends
as to what was happening and I found myself glued to the tele- on dues is funneled back in the form of services and low-cost edu-
vision watching the news…constantly. The Board of Trustees cation programs recognized by the NYSBOD for relicensure.
moved quickly and decided to switch the NYSAGD headquarters
to remote so that members would still be able to contact us by We value the loyalty of every member, and this pandemic has
phone or email. demonstrated just how much our members value the NYSAGD.
We can’t thank you enough!
We also chose to keep the continuing education going and, for the
first time, we began utilizing Zoom to bring live webinars of the
courses that were already on the 2020 calendar, especially those www.nysagd.org l Fall 2021 l GP 5