Hellos and goodbyes and many thanks!

Soon I’ll be greeting many of you at the annual ADAA and ADA sessions in Orlando.

We can say “Hello” then, but right now it’s time to say goodbye to those of you I won’t see in Disney World, and goodbye to the wonderful opportunity PennWell has provided ADAA and me to reach out and contact dental assistants everywhere through this electronic column.

As I look back on the past year, one of our biggest challenges and most glowing successes has been the implementation of our e-membership program. This is the free membership that ADAA offers to those who want a taste of membership in America’s largest dental assisting professional group without any risk or initial commitment.

We have welcomed thousands of dental assistants to this form of membership and we hope to continue their affiliation with us, while we invite those who haven’t joined us to take the time to look into it. Just go to www.dentalassistant.org and click on the E-Member tabs in the upper right hand corner of the home page. E-membership has opened up a new dimension of the ADAA to a whole new world of people, and I’m proud to have played a role in its development.

The ADAA is about relationships, and just as you can build your professional and social network with ADAA membership, the leadership of ADAA seeks to build relationships with those who will help to enhance the practice of dental assisting. Through the past year, we have strengthened our relationships with national and international dental and dental assisting organizations, branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, and very importantly for our professional prestige, America’s corporate leaders in the dental field.

Did you know that ADAA surveys show that dental assistants purchase most of the supplies for the day-to-day operations of the dental practice? We consider it our duty to make sure that American dental corporate leaders know this and recognize the importance of dental assistants to their good economic health.

America’s dental business helps to support our Foundation, which develops continuing education for all dental assistants and contributes to the profession’s growth. I want to thank all of them as well.

My thanks knows no bounds when it comes to recognizing the many ADAA members from coast to coast who give their time to bring their state and local components alive with education, public service, and professional/social networking. They helped make my path easier over 30 cities and more than 100 days on the road.

I’ll leave you with one thought: ADAA is the organization that makes dental assisting a profession, and it goes and grows because of those who support it. I thank those who support ADAA, and I extend a heartfelt invitation to those who haven’t joined already.

Thank you. It’s been a wonderful year.

Angela M. Swatts, CDA, EFDA,
ADAA president 2009-2010