Return to the Fall 2022 Newsletter

President's Message

It is amazing how time flies – it has been 6 months since our gathering in Memphis and assuming the presidency of the AAOM. With the support, inspiration, and passion of the membership we serve, the AAOM is at the initial phase of the strategic plan that Dr. Pinto shared at the General Assembly meeting. I am impressed with the level of creativity, dedication, determination, and enthusiasm of the members who are involved in the various working groups – Thank you to everyone who is contributing to these efforts that will define the future of our academy and the specialty! 

The three pillars of the strategic plan are Sustainability, Collaboration, and Engagement. In this first phase, we have working groups focused on improving existing revenue streams and seeking new revenue opportunities; developing a robust and sustainable sponsorship portfolio; membership retention and growth; dental student engagement; remodeling the AAOM Fall Meeting to attract new audiences to the specialty of oral medicine and the value of AAOM membership; growth and development of the Academic Fellowship program; oral medicine practice management and business model; and defining the AAOM/ABOM relationship. The working groups were formed shortly after the Memphis conference, and we look forward to sharing exciting updates at the 2023 annual conference in Savannah. 

October was a particularly eventful month for the AAOM. Together with Dr. Vidya Sankar (President-Elect) and Ms. Felicia Kenan (Executive Director), we attended SmileCon 2022 in Houston and had a wonderful meeting with the leadership of the American Dental Association including, Drs. Sabates (was President, now Immediate Past President), Shepley (was President-Elect, now President), Cohlmia (Executive Director), Preble (Chief Strategy Officer), and Araujo (Chief Science Officer and Chief Executive Officer of the ADA Science & Research Institute, LLC). As I noted in my introductions, to the best of my understanding, this was the first time that the AAOM and ADA leaders held an official meeting together. If the pace, depth, and intensity of conversation and questions were indicative, there was mutual respect and enthusiasm around the future of our relationship and opportunities for the profession of dentistry. Less than a week later, the AAOM Executive Committee convened in beautiful San Francisco for our mid-year in-person business meeting, followed by the AAOM Fall Conference at the University of California San Francisco School of Dentistry. Dr. Alessandro Villa (Assistant Secretary) and his team at UCSF organized a fantastic continuing education program that was well attended, both in-person and virtually.

This continues to be a very exciting moment for the AAOM, with so much optimism and opportunity as we look towards the future. But we must also remain cognizant of our history and traditions that have made the AAOM what it is today. Together with Drs. Martin Tyler (Chair, Procedures and Protocols Committee), Andres Davila, and Roxanne Bavarian, we are collaborating on an exciting project to create a digital archive of the history of the AAOM. This will be an engaging, informative, and entertaining resource for all to learn about the AAOM’s remarkable history, from its founding to the present. Also, especially for those creative and artistic members, be on the lookout for an upcoming announcement about a friendly competition to develop a new logo that truly represents and reflects the AAOM.

But to do all of this, and to carry the Strategic Plan forward from planning to action, will take hard work, many person-hours, and resources. The AAOM has been incredibly fortunate to benefit from the immense generosity and philanthropy of its members over the years. We plan to launch a capital campaign at the Savannah conference to raise funds to ensure that the strategic plan can be realized and to provide stability and growth for the AAOM as it enters this formative new chapter.

Thank you for being a proud member and supporter of the AAOM. We are defined by our membership and a common vision that connects us and strengthens our bonds. It is such a pleasure to serve as President of the AAOM, and I can’t wait to see many familiar and new faces at the annual conference in Savannah in May 2023!

Nathaniel S. Treister, DMD, DMSc