 Dr Firdaus Hanapiah
BDS (Otago), MSc Oral Surgery (London), FDSRCS (England)
President, Malaysian Oral Implant Association
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| Presidential Corner
It has been an enjoyable term for me as Vice President of the Malaysian Oral Implant Association. I thank you for your confidence in voting me to lead the Society into the next phase of our evolution.
We have grown by leaps and bounds from the inaugural meeting in 2003 in Jakarta into a force to be reckoned with.
We have been affiliated with the MDA as well as received international recognition by the ICOI. As with any fledgling society, we have gone through the euphoria of success in the conferences that we have organised.
We have also gone through various stages of "growing pains," mainly in overcoming the limited resources in organising various events.
It must be noted, however, that our members are a very understanding and supportive lot and have unstintingly helped the Society in many ways to ensure that the programmes that we run do become successful.
Notable successes include the first Symposium that was organised on October 2-3, 2004 at the Sunway Resort Hotel with about 100 participants. The second Scientific Symposium in November 2005 was also a success, graced by the Minister of Higher Education, at the Le Meridien Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. Various speakers, predominantly founding members, have also spoken overseas, namely in Indonesia and Singapore, sharing with our neighbours a thing or two of what we have achieved here in Malaysia.
For greater international exposure, we have initiated the bid for the Asia Pacific Section ICOI Annual Conference for 2008. A delegation will be planned to spearhead this bid later this year in Taiwan where the World ICOI Congress will be held.
With your continued support, this Society will build on our successes and grow even stronger in the future. This is where we have to concentrate our efforts in making this Society stronger and more relevant to our membership. The first initiative is the bi-monthly meeting initiated by our committee to have a "study evening."
We have also initiated an online presence for our members at Yahoo! Groups. This will facilitate better communication amongst members where they can share their clinical issues online as well as make suggestions, for this website and also for the Society.
Overall, it has been a very satisfying privilege for me, since the Society is made of not just colleagues of the same profession but also of true friends sharing common goals.
August 13, 2006
SCIENTIFIC SYMPOSIUM ON DENTAL IMPLANTOLOGY 2007
Sunday, November 18, 2007
We are witnessing today a historic paradigm shift in dentistry. Barely a decade ago, the general dentists were still explaining patiently to their patients that though dental implants were an option, their reliability was still uncertain. Therefore it is safer to place a good old reliable bridge!
But in a few short years, the paradigm has changed. Today, almost every professional agrees that the best replacement of a lost tooth is a dental implant, not a bridge anymore. The best anchorage for a denture is a dental implant, not a metal clasp.
The new standard of care in general dentistry is the incorporation of dental implantology into treatment planning. About three years ago, a dentist in Germany was sued by a patient who was given a bridge built on vital teeth. The dentist had failed to inform the patient of the option of implants. The dentist lost. The significance of this momentous paradigm shift is that dental implantology cannot remain the province of a few, but has to be rapidly incorporated into general dentistry.
And that is the major problem! Barely 10 to 15% of dentists in Malaysia actively practise dental implantology. Most dental schools still do not consider practical dental implantology as part of the undergraduate curriculum. We at the MOIA hope to help solve this shortfall in knowledge and skill by regularly holding seminars, talks, workshops and annual symposiums. This year’s scientific symposium is specially designed to assist as many dentists as possible to not only increase their knowledge on dental implants but also to get them started in delivering them in their own practice with increasing success.
We cordially invite each one of you to join us in this year’s MOIA SCIENTIFIC SYMPOSIUM ON DENTAL IMPLANTOLOGY 2007.
Dr Firdaus Hanapiah, BDS (Otago), MSc Oral Surgery (London), FDSRCS (England)
President
Malaysian Oral Implant Association (MOIA)
P.S.
For members of the public, there will be an informative exhibition of videos, slide shows, brochures and posters about dental implants on Sunday, November 18, 2007. You can also ask leading practitioners in the field of dental implantology questions about dental implants.
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