DHAA (NSW Branch) Inc. annual seminar

The NSW Branch of The Dental Hygienists Association of Australia Inc. held it s annual seminar on the 11 November 2000.

The day was a great success and delegates were given enlightening presentations by Dr Catherine Collins from Sydney, Dr Elizabeth Coates from Adelaide and Dr Evelyn Howe, a Clinical Psychologist from Sydney.

Continuing with the theme from the Olympic year, the topic was Goal Setting - Moving the post! Dr Cath Collins gave a very interesting talk relating to her work as a prosthodontist, her presentation was based on, Are we kicking in the right direction! Cath went through various treatment plans outlining advantages and disadvantages of extensive dental treatment, and the importance of meeting the patient s expectations for the long term outcome.

Dr Elizabeth Coates is the Clinical Co-ordinator of the Special Needs unit at the Adelaide Dental Hospital. Liz s topic was, Are we using the right tactic! Liz gave a very entertaining presentation which outlined the need for the new goal post due to the increasing prevalence of medical problems in our aging population, stressing the correlation of dental treatment with systemic health.

Dr Evelyn is a Consultant Clinician Psychologist who gave us an insight into dealing with different emotions within the dental surgery and the best way to communicate with different situations. She highlighted that those patients we find most difficult to cope with are usually those that require our best efforts in communication, compassion and coaching skills.

Larissa Derriman is president, DHAA Inc. NSW Branch.