COMMUNIQUE

 

SADA Communique - November 2018

 

 

KC Makhubele

CEO, The South African Dental Association

 

 

 

The capital city of South Africa, Pretoria was adorned in a haze of purple from a plethora of Jacaranda trees whilst playing host to an amazing SADA Dental & Oral Health Congress and Exhibition 2018 on the 12^th - 14^th October 2018. The Sun-Times Square Arena and Conference Centre in the heart of Menlyn was the chosen venue for this event.

The Congress which was hosted under the title "From Start to Finish" was delivered excellently through our 31 local and overseas speakers. SADA was honoured to have delegates from neighbouring SADC countries converging for a magical 2,5 days of learning, networking and fun.

During this Congress, we hosted in excess of 1113 delegates. Our event included interesting topics such as:

• Long term complications of dental implant prosthetics: The Mayo Clinic experience

• Management of severe curvatures and complex anatomy with controlled memory EDM files: A new approach for predictable results

• Composite vs Ceramic: Adhesthetics protocols

• Magnification: Not just a nice to have anymore

• Importance of oral cancer screening by primary dental and medical providers

• Assessing your infection control protocols

• The importance of high torque (full smile) in the occlusion aesthetic of the smile and biology in complex cases

• Treatment of skeletal class II/III in adult patients and conclusions

• The practice manager's role in creating a collaborative positive practice culture

• Effective tissue management and the use of endo-chemistries

• Strategies to improve clinical color matching of restora-tive materials for the replacement of teeth and gingivitis

• The role of the dentist in sleep medicine

• Getting along in the dental team

• The oral microbiome - recent advances in science

just to mention a few of the offerings. The 2,5 days programme certainly had something for everyone and delegates were offered a myriad of Master and Hands-on Classes and Parallel Sessions to select from.

Attendance to the event allowed delegates to earn a maximum of 21 CPD points when attending the whole event. It was absolutely a sparkling event in a magnificent backdrop of the Pretoria plenary.

This was the first time that SADA extended an invitation to oral health students to experience a SADA event of this magnitude prior to their completion of studies and graduation. Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, University of the Witwatersrand and University of Pretoria between them ensured 40 oral health students attended the event, their attendance being sponsored by SADA.

On Saturday evening SADA hosted one of the best gala dinners held for the oral health graduands from the three universities in the area. This was a first to have SMU, Wits and UP students celebrate together. The feedback from graduands attending the Congress and those who attended the Gala Dinner were very positive, and SADA are considering hosting the local graduates from the three universities again in the future. SADA Gauteng South and Pretoria branches led by Dr Sanele Poswa and Dr Ian Erasmus were outstanding in looking after the students.

Our local and international speakers helped make this an event to remember and celebrate. There was also plenty of time for socialising and networking since most of the delegates and exhibitors were staying at or close to the venue. Many stayed past midnight catching up and sharing both dental practice challenges and possible solutions.

After such a successful event, we are working on hosting the next event on the 30^th August - 1^st September 2019 at the Nkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre, Durban (Formerly Durban International Convention Centre). With an expected 1300 delegates, local and international exhibitors, more dental and oral health professional associations joining in with SADA this promises to be bigger, better and enlightening. Durban is a destination not to be missed. It is a coastal city in eastern South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal province. Durban is known for its African, Indian and colonial influences. It boasts a beautifully refurbished seafront promenade running from uShaka Marine World, a huge theme park with an aquarium, to the futuristic Moses Mabhida Stadium. The Durban Botanical Gardens showcases African plant species.

The SADA Scientific Advisory Committee (SADASAC), chaired by Prof Dale Howes is already working very hard to design a great clinical programme with the best speakers both locally and internationally who are experts in their field.

As Abraham Lincoln said, "The best way to predict the future is to create it." SADA is busy creating a new energy amongst the dental and oral health profession.

Yours in Dentistry,

KC.