Numbers are Not Enough

Photo by Dana Kaplan

Since early childhood, Dr. Henner’s second home has been the water, which he frequently covers in his boat, including commuting between his home in Melville and house on Fire Island.

A strong association depends on fully engaged members assured of the value of their membership.

A conversation with Kevin A. Henner, D.M.D., 141st president of the New York State Dental Association.

The overarching theme of Dr. Kevin Henner’s presidency is membership. But his approach to infusing the lifeblood of the Association differs in some aspects from past and present efforts.

In his first presidential address, delivered in August at the annual meeting of the NYSDA House of Delegates, Dr. Henner described his objectives as follows:

“First and foremost, we need to engage the active but silent members who just exist in their offices and play no role in creating the value of organized dentistry…Second, we need to focus on diversity…And when I speak of diversity, I’m talking about differences in ethnicity, gender, generations, specialties, practice settings and so much more. We want the leaders of those diverse groups to become our leaders. We are, after all, all dentists, sharing the common ground of our profession.”

Dr. Henner is uniquely situated to carry out one of his objectives. He will be the first NYSDA president to preside over the Association’s observance of Black History Month in February. A resolution passed by the 2021 House charges NYSDA with recognizing Black History Month in its publications and by engaging an “African-American Speaker of Excellence” to deliver a CE-credited address. Dr. Henner understands that attracting new members is just the first step. The second and, perhaps, more critical move is to establish in the minds—and experience—of all members the value of their association. And at no time has that value been more apparent than during the COVID-19 pandemic, when NYSDA was challenged with—and succeeded in—keeping its members fully informed about the virus and its ramifications and obtaining permission to reopen dental offices long before other businesses were allowed to. Again, from his speech before the House of Delegates:

“When I say membership, I’m not talking about it as a council, or the realization of increased dues on a spreadsheet or our market share but, rather, the value of belonging to our Association and organized dentistry, which was incredibly evident during the last 18 months….We have learned a lot over the last year— how to function and manage in a crisis, how to adjust to rapid change, and so much more.”

To that end, Dr. Henner pledges to keep open the lines of communication within the Board, the councils and the membership. “Engaged members,” he said, “are critical to the success of the Association.”

Dr. Henner’s recreational pursuits include tennis.

A 1990 graduate of Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, Dr. Henner has been employed for 31 years in the private practice of dentistry in Deer Park on Long Island. His involvement in organized dentistry—ADA, NYSDA, Suffolk County Dental Society—has been equally long. Previous to being elected president of NYSDA, he held the top elected post at SCDS.

While he’s been an active participant in a variety of committees, commissions and councils, Dr. Henner found his niche— and his passion—working in the area of professional ethics and professional liability. He joined the NYSDA Council on Ethics in 1999, as a representative of SCDS. In 2006, he was named council chair, which was followed by appointment to be NYSDA’s representative to the ADA Council on Ethics, Bylaws and Judicial Affairs (CEBJA). He was appointed CEBJA Chair in 2012 and served for one year. He is currently a presenter of the NYSDA/New York State Dental Foundation Ethics and Professionalism mandated course and the NYSDA/MLMIC risk management course. He lectures before SCDS on Ethics and Code of Conduct and is a facilitator at the University at Stony Brook School of Dental Medicine for the American College of Dentists Ethics Scenarios.

Dr. Henner holds membership also in the American College of Dentists, the Pierre Fauchard Academy (2022 Distinguished Service Award winner) and the International College of Dentists. A member of the Board of the Greater Long Island Dental Meeting, he was GLIDM Chair in 2013.

What follows is more information about Dr. Henner, gleaned from a recent conversation. Dr. Henner proudly poses with his children Jacob and Allie and granddog Pippin.

Photo by David Roth/Jovon Photography

The NYSDA President with his significant other, Ann Migione. Ms. Migione is a middle school English teacher. When not on the water or tennis court, Dr. Henner hits the links. He describes himself as a serious, competitive golfer.

Photo by Dana Kaplan

And he’s an avid gardener, filling his yard with annuals, perennials and vegetables.

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Dix Hills, which is part of Suffolk County, Long Island. I also had the benefit of spending my summers on an amazing national seashore called Fire Island. Two very close locations, only about half an hour apart, but totally different scenery, mentality and truly a blessing, thanks to the vision of my parents, Dr. Sidney Henner and Dr. Carol Henner. My father, now deceased, was a graduate of NYU College of Dentistry and an ADA Life Member. My mother, valedictorian when at NYU, traveled many different paths, ending in an approximate 30-year career as a clinical psychologist.

I have two amazing older brothers. The eldest, Robert, is a dentist practicing down in West Palm Beach, FL. My middle brother, Michael, is a dermatopathologist in Orlando, FL.

What about the rest of your immediate family?

I’m a proud father blessed with two children. Son, Jacob, is 26 years old, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and just incredible. He works as an infrastructure engineer for a financial technology firm in New York. He’s truly brilliant.

My daughter, Allie, 22, is also a phenom in my eyes. She is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis and also brilliant on so many levels. Even during the pandemic, with a hiring freeze nationwide, Allie secured an amazing job in UX (user experience) design and moved to Austin, TX, with my granddog, Pippin. Hard to admit that both of my kids are so much brighter than I ever was or ever will be but, oh my God, they are truly the reason I have the strength I do.

Where did you go to school?

I grew up in the Half Hollow Hills school district in Dix Hills, NY. I attended college at Hobart and William Smith in Geneva, in the absolutely gorgeous Finger Lakes region of New York State. I graduated with a B.S. in chemistry and went on to earn my dental degree from Tufts University School Dental Medicine. I did some other work during those years, including research with kidney transplantation and biochemical pesticides.

I had the benefit of joining my father’s practice upon graduation. My brother was there as well. My father was an amazing dentist, with an incredible ethic and, certainly, clinical talent. He was not involved in organized dentistry to the level I have been, but he was known as an amazing mediator, with very long experience on the Suffolk County Peer Review Committee.

What have we learned from the COVID-19 shutdown?

Much of what I’ve learned from the whole COVID-19 experience is not terribly unique and should, I believe, be obvious. As an organization, we need to have more effective and broader-reaching communication and contact with our members. Membership is so important, yet so many of us don’t understand its true value— and that includes members whose sole involvement is to make their yearly dues payment. We’re back to work in our offices because of organized dentistry and its efforts. The inherent value in that is priceless. Somehow, we need to communicate that to both members and nonmembers.

Dr. Henner’s boat, a center-console sport fisherman, is outfitted for deep sea fishing. Once on the Atlantic, he hunts for tuna and shark, always sharing his catch with others so nothing goes to waste.

Sadly, what I also learned is that science and data do not always predict outcome. Politics, unfortunately, come into play. I’m afraid the pandemic is far from over and will be an issue for quite some time, which will continue to focus attention on the value of membership in our Association.

What do you see as the greatest challenges facing dentistry today and how should the profession respond?

We have many challenges, internal and external. Given the network of talent we possess, we will vet, collaborate, mediate and come to a unified decision, all in the best interest of the organization. Professionals need to respond with a clear message about the value of membership. We have a broad list of challenges within the profession, but membership and diversity have to be addressed as priority items. To that end, we need to embrace everyone involved in the profession, all of the diverse groups. I want all of the leaders within the dental profession, from all the diverse groups, to collaborate and, ultimately, become our leaders.

At our House of Delegates meeting in August, we adopted a resolution calling for the Association to commemorate Black History Month. Certainly, a wonderful move in the right direction, but not enough. We need to focus specifically on the diverse makeup of our profession and work toward including all disparate groups in the Association, especially in leadership positions. It is necessary that we recognize that we are all dentists with the same responsibility to the profession and the patients we serve.

What convinced you that you needed to join organized dentistry?

Having many family members in organized dentistry was a start. Certainly, my father and my brother and my father-in-law were a significant influence. However, I took my involvement to a new level. One of my introductions into organized dentistry came through the Suffolk County ethics and professional liability council. I joined and was immediately hooked! Thank you, Dr. Lester Beck and Dr. Al Sunshine. Who knew? I guess I always felt that I’d like to be at the table for the discussion of matters that influenced my entire professional life.

To our new dentist members and even our longer-serving members who have not engaged in the Association I say, there is a reason to sit at that table. I’m already there, but I would rather you be there, too, by my side. Power in numbers. It’s that simple!

Please understand that this is the rest of your professional life. I need you. We all need you, to protect the future of the profession and the future of the public we treat. We have an awesome responsibility, but we also have incredible ability to deliver our services and protect and treat our patients. Serving our membership in this manner only solidifies our reputation and our responsibility. p

Dr. Henner with staff, from left, Priscilla Arth, Andrey Salentino, Carlene Fasano, Office Manager Lina Smigiel, Michaela Engel.