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Leadership and Other Considerations
What makes the Pierre Fauchard International Honor Dental Academy unique and different from other honor organizations? In my book, it has to do with the tenets of the Academy, its mission, and its goals. There is no question that other groups, who are considered to be outstanding and of high caliber, have lofty aims and purport to be significant in one area or another: i.e., ACD in the field of ethics; ICD in the field of journalism. They also have aspects that involve education and service to others, but none of them equal PFA in its pursuit of excellence in leadership and service to community, nation, and region.
Take the history of the Academy, for instance. When it was founded in 1936 by Elmer C. Best and his colleagues, dental literature was a sorry mess. It was generally proprietary in nature, published by dental manufacturers who proselytized their own particular products without any research or other substantiation, and did not follow many precepts of truth. Dr. Best’s group decried this situation, urged the dental profession to change this situation and recapture peer-reviewed journalism for its own. What we see today is a reflection of that effort, and we must applaud the foresight and the intensity of purpose with which this small cadre brought about essential change. That is the essence of leadership, and it has remained strong within the Academy ever since.
Over the intervening years, the focus on literature changed and the directions of the Academy altered to reflect increasing interest in recognizing the leaders of Dentistry and emulating them. This led to the Gold Medal Award for excellence in the United States, the Distinguished Service Awards for leadership, the Dental Industry Award that recognizes manufacturers and suppliers of dental equipment for innovative contributions, the Elmer C. Best Memorial Award for excellence in other areas of the world—all of which have become synonymous with prestige and high worth. In addition, a so-called Hall of Fame was established to enshrine those who have been considered the giants of the profession, with appropriate ceremonies at the Fench Dental Society's headquarters in Paris, France—certainly a fitting location in memory of the founding father of modern Dentistry, Pierre Fauchard. Plaques are also on display at the National Museum of Dentistry in Baltimore, Maryland. Much goes into researching these names, and kudos to the committee that has this enormous task! Again, the stress is on leadership!
Fate intervened in 1990 with the bequest of the estate of a Cost Rican practitioner, Dr. Brenes Espinach, to another arm of the Academy, the Foundation of the Pierre Fauchard Academy.
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The value of this legacy, once all the dust settled and it was finalized, has enabled the Foundation to augment the activities of the Academy in a multiplicity of ways. Over the past 10 years, approximately $3.5 million has been awarded to dental service projects across the globe that have passed the strong scrutiny of a dedicated Grants Committee and have been deemed worthy, and to selected third-year dental students, passing into their fourth year, in the form of scholarships in all US schools of dentistry, most of the Canadian dental schools, and some 28 dental schools in other countries. The service projects bring oral health care to needy peoples, impoverished neighborhoods and areas, and to many neglected regions both here and abroad. With over 130 applications annually, it is a daunting task for the Committee to wade through the extensive documentation, search their own consciences as to how to judge these, and then to finally decide on some 30 to fund. What is even more interesting is that these 30 are secondarily reviewed by the Foundation Board of Trustees in concert at their annual meeting in October, before the final okay is authorized. Nothing is left to chance!
So now, back to my theme! All who have been selected as candidates for Fellowship in the Academy have likewise to pass muster. Hopefully, those inducted have truly passed the test, have been among the leaders in dentistry, have dedicated themselves towards making the dental profession responsible and responsive, and have earned the sobriquet of “dental leader” from their colleagues. A plaque on the wall, a pin in the lapel, a medallion around the neck: none of these are worth what it cost to fabricate them, if they are not put to good use in the service of others, in the raising the bar of professionalism and ethics, and in the pursuance of excellence.
I hope this overview has reminded us all as to the true value of Fellowship in the Academy. I urge each of you to reach out, identify those who would add esteem and worth to the Academy, bring their names to the attention of your Section Chair or your specific Trustee for consideration in the next class of inductees, and spread the word about who we are, what we are about, and why being a Fellow of the Pierre Fauchard Academy is an honor unto itself!
The annual meeting is not far away, and the dates are October 16-18. If you have not made your reservations for it, please do so. We would welcome all of you in Las Vegas; that would be something to shout about!
Be proud of the Academy, and celebrate your being a part of it!
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