Sunstar and the International Federation of Dental Hygienists present the winners of the 6th World Dental Hygienist Awards at ISDH Seoul
- The World Dental Hygienist Awards ceremony was held at the International Symposium on Dental Hygiene (ISDH) in Seoul, South Korea
- Six winners were awarded across six categories: Public Health, Full Time Clinician, Academia, Entrepreneur, New RDH and Research
- The World Dental Hygienist Awards recognize and celebrate dental hygienists worldwide
Sunstar Oral Health, part of Sunstar, in partnership with the International Federation of Dental Hygienists (IFDH), has presented the winners of the 6th edition of the World Dental Hygienist Awards at the International Symposium on Dental Hygiene (ISDH), in Seoul, South Korea.
Mayumi Kaneda, Director of the Sunstar Foundation and Wanda Fedora, President, International Federation of Dental Hygienists welcomed the global winners to the World Dental Hygienist Awards ceremony. The awards, supported by the Sunstar Foundation, celebrate and recognize the achievements of dental hygienists worldwide and were originally established in 2007.
Each of the winners received their all-expenses trip to the ceremony at ISDH Seoul, a trophy and a USD 1,500 prize, presented by Mayumi Kaneda, Director of the Sunstar Foundation.
The 2024 Sunstar World Dental Hygienist Awards winners: (to download images of the individual winners visit https://we.tl/t-8XUcqHePpf)
Left to right, Mayumi Kaneda, Director, Sunstar Foundation, Jill Rethman, President Elect IFDH , Wanda Fedora, President IFDH, winners (Lorella, Juhwa, Thérèse, Gianna, Federica, Britt), Wendy Stewart, Chair WDHA selection committee.
Individual Winners
Federica D’Anteo, Italy, Dental Hygienist at Il Centro Dentale s.a.s. in Cavaria con Premezzo, and author. |
Award: Public Health Wrote ‘La cura dei denti senza barriere’ a first in Italian dental publishing which breaks down communication barriers between the dental team and patients who do not understand the language and aims to spread the culture of oral health, through dental hygienists, dentists and dental assistants, and to strengthen the concept of community dentistry. |
“Winning this award means being able to communicate with everyone, prevent oral diseases, and treat everyone without language and racial barriers. Thanks to the Sunstar Foundation for giving such great importance to this tool (the book “La cura dei denti senza barriere”) and for helping to share awareness of it.” |
Gianna Maria Nardi, Italy, Dental Hygienist and Associate Professor at Sapienza University of Rome. |
Award: Academia One of the first 13 dental hygienists in Italy, Gianna founded the first association of dental hygienists and its entry into the IFDH. Collaborated in the first IFDH congress in Italy and has taught in various Italian universities and directed various Masters and Advanced Training Courses. Today, she directs a Master for the management of oral health in special needs patients. |
“Devoting a professional life to the study and research on the innovation of operative protocols dedicated to oral health and winning the Academia category of the World Dental Hygienist Awards program and receiving it during the prestigious International Symposium for Dental Hygiene (ISDH) is joyful and emotional. Thank you, Sunstar Foundation and the International Federation of Dental Hygienists (IFDH).” |
Lorella Mengarelli, Italy,Dental Hygienist at Studio Tiozzi Ferroni in Cesenatico.
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Award: Full-Time Clinician Lorella has developed specialist experience and expertise on the oral health of Alzheimer’s and Dementia patients and educates family members and caregivers on how to manage the oral hygiene of loved ones at home. |
“I am truly honored and grateful to receive such a prestigious recognition. It’s a source of great pride and deeply inspires me to uphold and spread the values represented by this award.” |
Thérèse Elkerbout, Netherlands, Dental Hygienist and Clinical Epidemiologist at the Academic Center for Dentistry Amsterdam (ACTA).
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Award: Research With a lifelong career commitment to dental hygiene, currently chief of the Help-Uganda-Foundation (HUG). Combines her three professional loves:being a dental hygienist in the oral hygiene practice, working as lecturer at the ACTA periodontology department on evidence-based dental hygiene and volunteering in Uganda. Awarded a PhD in December 2022. |
“I’m thrilled, honored and thankful to win this Sunstar World Dental Hygienist Award for research. “This award is a milestone for me that was made possible thanks to the Sunstar Foundation, the jury of the IFDH, and all who voted for my YouTube film 🙏🏽” |
Brittany Glauz, US, Dental Hygienist | Creator of BrushwithBritt, Podcast Host, Speaker, and Writer |
Award: New RDH Britt has become an advocate for dental hygienists through her platform BrushwithBritt LLC. With more than 40,000 followers on TikTok, 20,000 followers on Instagram, and a podcast with more than 45 episodes, Britt uses her knowledge and expertise to educate, empower and motivate dental hygienists.
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“To earn global recognition as a new RDH, represents how unity in our field drives innovation and elevates the standard of oral health. It represents not only a personal achievement, but also the potential for every new hygienist to make significant contributions to dentistry and to inspire change and excellence in the profession.” |
Juhwa Lee, South Korea, Master, Hiroshima University Graduate School, RDH
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Award: Entrepreneur Juhwa created a platform called Healthy Oral Healthy Body, or HOHB. This is not just an online store selling for example, notepads to track treatment progress, but also a medium for dental hygienists who have ideas to improve care for their patients, so they can participate in product planning and production together. |
“A healthy mouth for a healthy body, that’s what I believe as a dental hygienist and as a human being. Just as the first gateway to maintaining and promoting full-body health is oral health, I believe that the first gateway to oral health is the dental hygienist, just like the theme of ISDH 2024.” |
Commented Mayumi Kaneda, Director of the Sunstar Foundation: “It was wonderful to meet all the winners and congratulate them in person. We are so proud of all their work and incredible contributions to the profession.”