SFDDA Newsleter

President’s Message

In our endless pursuit to better our patient’s lives, we all have found our unique systems - our habits - that allow us to offer excellent care. That said, we try to avoid repeating what doesn’t work, and instead hone in on our excellence. Similarly, over the years, the South Florida District Dental Association (SFDDA) has developed numerous processes that keep you, our membership, in mind. This year is no exception. And I am proud to report that our team is functioning very well and that I am looking forward to many great accomplishments and benefits to serve our members.

Going into the final months of this year, our SFDDA team is in full stride. Our affiliate presidents, Dr. Ross Hauer (South Broward), Dr. Alejandro Alvarado (Miami Dade), and Dr. Bill Abbo (North Dade-Miami Beach), have done a fantastic job planning speakers for our inperson meetings. Be sure to thank them for their hard work next time you see them. These meetings reflect what our organization is all about - community, camaraderie, and engagement. I sure hope you had a chance to attend some or all of them. Remember, you are welcome to participate in meetings at any of the three affiliate societies within our South Florida district.

Please be on the lookout for our February “tri-affiliate” meeting, which will be held in Aventura and feature Dr. Robert Vogel. I look forward to getting everyone together for what should be a great event.

In addition to these in-person events, our new online platform, Tradewing, is off to a great start, with over 350 members signed up. Please utilize platform this to engage with your fellow dentists. We are all stronger together.

The “Ain’t That the Tooth” podcast continues to deliver unique content. If you have yet to check it out, you can

find it where you get your podcasts, and listen in the next time you’re driving to work or out for a jog. You’re sure to learn something.

Whatwedowouldnotbepossiblewithoutourfantastic staff - our executive director, Yolanda Marrero, our membership coordinator, Jackie Quintero, and our social and digital media coordinator, Victoria Marrero. Theyhaveembracedourboard’sideasandtrulymake our organization excellent.

And speaking of excellence, I congratulate our very own Dr. Cesar Sabates for his remarkable tenure as president of theADAover the 2021-2022 year. He has mentored many of us and has set a great example by virtueofhislifetimecommitmenttoorganizeddentistry HewasalsothefirstCuban-AmericantoserveasADA president.

As time goes on, SFDDA will develop new habits to keepupwithanexcellentmembershipexperience.You can help us adapt to changing times, and we ask for your feedback! Please write or post on Tradewing to share your thoughts and opinions.

Withtheholidaysquicklyapproaching,Iwishyouasafe and happy holiday season! We often get caught up in ourprofession,butremembertocherishthegoodtimes wehaveoutsideoftheoffice.WeALLhavesomuchto be thankful for.

As always, feel free to reach out to me for any recommendations,orifyouwouldliketogetinvolvedinhelping to lead our association.

Be well, John Aylmer,DMD

‐John Aylmer D.M.D.

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” -Aristotle.

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ADA History

‐ Richard A. Mufson, DDS,Editor

Back on October 19, 2020, a unique moment in our history occurred. It was a moment of unparalleled vicarious pride within the South Florida District Dental Association (SFDDA) – when one of our most esteemed and dedicated long­time members, Dr. Cesar Sabates, was elected President­Elect of the American Dental Association (ADA) at the annual meeting in Orlando.

In the Spring 2021 issue of this newsletter, we also shared with you the story of “The Little Engine That Could.” The article recounted how the efforts of a small group of innovative and talented people from our small unassuming local component dental society – and with little help from outside groups or resources –managed to combine forces of motivation, hard work, hi­tech audio, video, and social media to help propel Cesar to victory. The lion’s share of the work and credit for his successful run, of course, rightly belongs to the candidate, and the man himself, Dr. Cesar Sabates.

As the ultimate culmination of Cesar’s tireless decades­long effort and dedication to organized dentistry, he was then installed at the annual meeting in Las Vegas, as the 158th president of the ADA.

There were also several “firsts,” to his incredible story. He would be the first Cuban­American elected to this position, the first from South Florida, and in fact the first ever from the entire state of Florida, to take the helm of the ADA as president.

Cesar then embarked on what would be a very meaningful, productive and “transformative” year of accomplishments. Much of his tenure was devoted to meeting with and engaging many diverse groups within dentistry, which included dental school faculty and deans throughout the country, to discuss the numerous challenges faced by our educational colleagues and dental students in funding, debt and a host of other issues.

He met with the leaders of a number other health­related organizations, including his participation several months earlier in a “fireside chat” with American Medical Association President, Dr. Gerald Harmon.

In a very emotion­filled and well­delivered address to the ADA House of Delegates at the recent annual meeting in Houston on October 15, Cesar spoke of a number of other highlights of his presidential term.

He cited a year of “tremendous victory in our progress,” which included, among many other accomplishments, his advocacy for oral health and health equity, while also demonstrating in his own unique way, his passion for diversity and inclusion, and his effort in wanting to brand ADA as a “welcoming and safe place, an oasis where dentists of all backgrounds can find support, direction and refuge.”

Cesar also underscored the personal emotional impact of having visited Houston eight years earlier for treatment of cancer at MD Anderson, and then returning, thankfully cancer­free, to mark the end of his term as ADA president.

From all those who have known Cesar over the years, and have been so familiar with his devotion, his accomplishments, his love of faith, family and his colleagues in dentistry – I know I speak for so many in wanting to express to him our deep sense of heartfelt gratitude for his years of service, and for representing us so well at our local, state and ultimately, at the highest level to which one can ascend – the national level, as ADA president. From all of us: “Thank you,” Cesar!”

Richard A. Mufson, DDS is the editor of the SFDDA Newsletter and may be contacted at (305) 935-7501 or MufsonOral Surg@aol.com

Pictured on next page starting at the top clockwise: Dr. Sabates with Dr. Cohlmia; with leadership from the Michigan Dental Association; with the Alaska Dental Association Board of Directors; with Drs. Michael Eggnatz, Larry Nissen, Chad Gehani, Maxine Feinberg, Jeffrey Cole and Alan Friedel; with dental students at the ADPAC event; with his wife, Lydia Sabates; with the ADA and ASDA Boards at the Joint Meeting in Washington, DC during the ADA Leadership Conference; with part of his campaign team, Drs. Mark Limosani, Zack Kalarickal, Michael Eggnatz, Alan Friedel, (bottom row l-r) Ms. Valentina Izarra, Drs. Robin Nguyen, Irene Marron -Tarrazzi and Ms.Suzanne Friedel.

In My Opinion

Celebrating Dr. Cesar Sabates’s Year of Dedication and “Transformation,” As Among the Most Popular and Well­Respected Presidents in

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What are you waiting for?? And if you have, why aren’t you using it? This is a members-only feature to help build a stronger community!

We understand how important it is for you to be able to connect, collaborate, and learn from your peers. To help meet this need, we are thrilled to have this online community exclusively for SFDDA members where you can engage in discussions with each other and learn from your peers in our district anytime. You can even post the fun stuff.

We have posted nformation about upcoming events and affiliate meetings there. In fact you can register for these events there too.

Check your in-box for your invitation - because we’re moving away from regular email to reach you.

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SFDDA Tradewing

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Affiliate Meetings 2022!!

Kicking off the SFDDA’s affiliate society C.E. events was the North Dade­Miami Beach Dental Society with the first ever “Pop­Up” dental lectures. Attendees enjoyed appetizers and cocktails, and mini­lectures presented by Drs. Irene Marron­Tarrazi, Nuria Otero and Mark Limosani. The Miami Dade and South Broward Dental Societies followed, holding traditional dinner meetings with Drs. Shmuel Stern and Irwin Becker.

The SFDDA has enjoyed a resurgence of these meetings bringing attendance back to and beyond pre­pandemic numbers and we are looking forward to 2023!

North Dade Meeting at the Aventura Hilton

Above Left: Dr. Mark Limosani engages attendees with insight to endodontics.

Left and Above right: Dr. Irene Marron Tarrazzi presents along with Dr. Nuria Otero on perio and restoration.

Miami Dade Meeting at Casa Juancho Restaurant

Attendees at Miami Dade’s September and October meetings were treated to lectures by Dr. Shmuel Stern and Danni Sayman.

FDA Governance: Please Consider the Facts

Letter to the Editor submitted by Dr. Drew Johnson, FDA Gover‐nance Task Group Chair, in response to “Opinion: Update on Florida Dental Association Proposed Changes in Governance,” published in the Summer 2022 SFDDA Newsletter

Upon reading Dr. Richard Mufson’s opinion piece recently published in the summer issue of the SFDDA Newsletter, one might come away with the notion that the Florida Dental Association (FDA) House of Delegates (HOD) has acted hastily — and with malice toward some — to do away with “50 years of history” that has served us well.

Nothing could be further from the truth. And we appreciate Dr. Mufson allowing us the opportunity to respond.

The most recent actions of the HOD regarding FDA’s governance structure were not accurately reflected in Dr. Mufson’s opinion piece. These actions had overwhelming support from the delegates with more than 95% of that body voting in favor. This governance decision was not taken lightly, nor was it taken without a great deal of thought, work and input from members throughout the state.

Just as patients wisely get routine check­ups for their oral health, wise associations routinely evaluate the “health” of their governance structures. While we may be comfortable with this system that has been in place for decades, it is important and responsible for leadership to evaluate whether the FDA is running efficiently and is well positioned for the future. In this spirit, in 2020, thenFDA President, Dr. Andy Brown, appointed a task group composed of representatives from each component to evaluate the association’s governance structure.

The FDA Board of Trustees selected Michael Gallery, PhD, a nationally recognized leader in association governance, to assist the task group. Dr. Gallery has worked with the American Dental Association as well as numerous state and regional dental associations on strategic planning and governance. He was engaged to guide a process that enabled members of the task group to identify FDA governance problems and develop our own solutions.

No one will agree to a solution without first agreeing on the problem. A problem is a critical difference between what should be and what is. Therefore, the first step in the process was to identify the principles upon which our governance structure should be based (e.g., Leadership positions are filled by those who have the neces‐sary qualifications to meet the responsibility of the position, taking into consideration demographics and diversity of the leadership body. There is equal opportunity for all qualified members to fill leadership positions.)

These principles, initially developed by the task group, were submitted to the FDA Board, the HOD, and all component organizations for review and discussion. After discussion and some modification, a final list of principles was unanimously adopted by both the Board and the HOD.

The task group compared the approved governance principles (what should be) against the FDA’s current structure (what is) to identify gaps (problems). The list of gaps was also widely published, and time was allowed for review and discussion before the HOD and the Board unanimously voted in favor of the list of problems.

Then, and only then, did the task group undertake the job of developing suggested solutions to the problems that all in the Board and the HOD agreed existed. Once the proposed solutions were developed, they were presented via a webinar to all members who wished to participate. Participants were given time to ask questions or offer suggestions to the proposed changes. The proposed changes were also provided to the components for review and comment.

The task group met again to review all comments that were received and make final changes to the document. That document was presented to the June 2022 HOD with considerable discussion in a special “town hall” meeting of the FDA Council on Ethics, Bylaws and Judicial Affairs, as well as a reference committee and debate on the floor. Everyone who wished to speak was recognized. Some members wanted to revisit the list of problems. The Speaker of the House made it clear that discussing that document would be out of order because the HOD had unanimously approved it at the prior meeting. Absolutely no one was prevented from expressing their views about the document or the proposed changes before the House.

Dr. Mufson suggests that one of the driving forces behind the changes to governance may be “wanting to continue to punish others for previous alleged transgressions.” This assertion is totally without merit. The FDA has not punished any component. The absence of the SFDDA at the HOD is not the FDA’s decision or preference. Second, the changes, which still include delegates from each component and additionally, members at­large elected by the HOD, equally affect all components. Therefore, if any element was designed to “punish” one component, it would end up punishing all components. Does that make sense?

The governance changes were carefully developed through a deliberative process with each step building on previous steps in the process to arrive at a well thought out conclusion. Dr. Mufson states, “if everyone else in the state and within HOD is truly ‘OK’ with the new proposed changes, should they pass, then no prob‐lem.” They have overwhelming passed so let’s move on.

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Response From the Editor:

We thank Dr. Johnson and the members of the Governance Task Force for their effort and hard work in this project, and for his submission of a “Letter to the Editor.”

We can all agree that some changes in “health” and governance are important for organizations, and that “some” of the proposed changes for FDA make sense.

However, many members continue to feel that certain “other” changes are far less favorable – such as those dealing with whether each of our six state components will retain the historic, timetested right to choose their own leaders on a rotating basis (officers, trustees), or whether a select group from within FDA would be “more qualified” to choose them for us.

If the latter line of thinking sounds familiar, it is because such an unwelcomed departure from prior tradition and accepted norms is exactly what took place within HOD in both 2017 and 2019. And, to the casual observer, how shall I say, the result did not seem to work out so well (read: caused division and disenfranchisement among membership).

We stand by our belief that such changes would continue to move us in the wrong direction and further down the path of what would be perceived as a loss of voice and equal representation among

general membership, with increasing questions as to whether our opinions and participation truly “matter.”

There are certainly other points of disagreement – such as whether the “95% support” is an over­inflated number coming from within a very limited group ­ i.e., from both the two­member­percomponent Task Force and HOD – or whether it is actually an accurate reflection among general grass roots members (who were not asked nor surveyed on this) of whether they would approve of this or not. Disagreement also exists as to whether opinionseeking venues such as the webinar, Town Hall Meeting or Reference Committee/HOD floor – where some members’ opinions were excluded or outright rejected and “shut down” ­ were truly welcoming and open to “all” opinions.

The concern remains that, if such changes are “pushed through,” arguably developed with less depth and breadth of thought than one would expect from a large successful organization such as FDA, nor with full and adequate consideration of impact on membership, one would again only hope it would not lead to a decreased levels of interest, decreased feelings of value or worth in participation among members, nor result in more “empty tables.”

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