Drs. Thomas Hart and Marshall Gallant appointed by FDI Council to Standing Committees

Drs. Thomas Hart and Marshall Gallant appointed by FDI Council to Standing Committees

CHICAGO, September 25, 2015 — Dr. Tom Hart was appointed by the FDI Council to serve on the FDI Science Committee during the FDI Annual World Dental Congress in Bangkok, Thailand on Sept 22-25, 2015. Dr. Hart is the senior director of the ADA Foundation Dr. Anthony Volpe Research Center (VRC), located on the National Institute of Standards and Technology campus in Gaithersburg, Maryland. He has been actively involved in dentistry for more than 30 years, as a clinician, educator, and researcher, and was chairman of the ADA Council on Scientific Affairs. He has previous experience as a member of the staff at the National Institutes Health (NIH), and as a faculty member at the University of Illinois-Chicago. He is the program coordinator for the first-ever ADA conference on genetics, “Genetics in Dentistry: Navigating the Sea of Genomic Data,” (Oct. 28-29, 2015) that will consider current issues involved in genetic testing and the expectations for genetics in dentistry. The conference “will discuss the issues that the dental community needs to understand to develop and implement safe and effective genetic tests to improve clinical care,” according to Dr. Hart.

Dr. Marshall Gallant was appointed by the FDI Council to serve on the FDI Public Health Committee. Dr. Gallant is chief of dental services at the Orlando Veterans Administration Medical Center, one of the largest government-funded oral health care institutions in the U.S. For the past seven years, Dr. Gallant has served on what is now the ADA Foundation International Programs Subcommittee (formerly the ADA International Development Subcommittee/Health Volunteers Overseas Steering Committee). Currently, as chair of the committee, he oversees all international humanitarian initiatives of the ADA Foundation including ADAF/Health Volunteers Overseas teaching and training programs in seven different countries: Kenya, Cambodia, Laos, Nicaragua, St. Lucia, Nepal, and Tanzania.

“These individuals have dedicated many years to improving the oral health of people around the world, said Dr. Maxine Feinberg, ADA president. “Their breadth of experience and qualifications will be of tremendous value not only to the FDI members but to ADA members as well, having a positive impact on dental health worldwide. I have witnessed their leadership and commitment to oral health firsthand, and I know that they are dedicated to advancing the dental profession and the oral health of the global public.”

The FDI World Dental Federation is comprised of approximately 200 national dental associations, including the ADA, from more than 130 countries. It represents the voice of over one million dentists worldwide.

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