Dentsply Sirona recently announced winners of the Smart Integration Award 2021.
The award, which was launched in 2019, recognizes the achievements of women in dentistry from around the world and their innovative treatment concepts, according to a press release. It also creates a network of women in dentistry.
This year’s applicants came from about 40 different countries. Ninety nominees selected by the international jury of Dentsply Sirona executives and external experts attended the virtual awards ceremony, which was held earlier this month. Dentsply Sirona’s goal with the award is “to do justice to the growing proportion of women in dental professions, promote their skills, and improve their career opportunities.”
Dentists and dental technicians submitted their ideas for integrating digital technologies into the practices and dental laboratories of the future and for improving the patient experience. Winners were recognized in five categories: "Digital Clinical Workflow," "Digital Patient Communication," "Innovative Infection Control and Prevention," "Management of Dental Equipment," and "Smart Lab-Dentist Cooperation."
The innovation categories in the field of digital dentistry were expanded this year because of a high level of global interest. There were also more applicants this year, with U.S. dentists and dental technicians able to apply for the first time.
Two of this year's Smart Integration Award winners are Dr. Shivi Gupta from San Diego and Christine Trautmann from Darmstadt, Germany. Dr. Gupta won in the "Digital Patient Communication" category. In three case descriptions, the CAD/CAM expert showed how she achieves high esthetic and functional success using a completely digital workflow.
Christine Trautmann won in the "Smart Lab-Dentist Cooperation" category with her presentation of a fully digitalized ordering process between the dentist and lab.
Prof. Ihsane Ben Yahya, President of the World Dental Federation FDI, attended the award ceremony as guest of honor.
"I am certain that tonight’s winners are the leaders of tomorrow,” she said, according to the release. “And that the women gathered here will help lead the way to empower patients everywhere with innovative solutions and ideas that can revolutionize our industry."
After the award ceremony, the winners began a two-day expert training program consisting of training sessions, workshops, and seminars on numerous specialist topics relating to treatments. The program is designed to enable women to draw on the great potential of digital technologies in dentistry and to promote international networking.
The winners of the Smart Integration Award become part of the "Smart Integration Network." Members of this network contribute their knowledge to further develop existing Dentsply Sirona products and find new, innovative solutions.
Click here for a full list of winners.
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