Volume 9 • 2022 • Issue 1

Richard Holden BSc, DDS president@cda-adc.ca TakingCare of EachOther SoWe Can Take Care of Canadians A s I write this column at home near the north shore of PEI at the beginning of the new year, COVID-19 case numbers are the highest they’ve ever been in Canada. We are undergoing new pandemic restrictions in many places and my colleagues across the country are both very tired after the last two years and newly stressed about how to best care for their patients in this rapidly evolving environment. I’ve been reading about the Omicron variant and watching the news closely. I’ve been considering how the present surge in infections is affecting us all, including our physical health, our mental health and our ability to provide essential oral health care to the public. I realize that these words won’t reach you for a few weeks and I hope that by the time you’re reading them, case numbers across the country will be in decline. From what I’ve learned about the Omicron variant and how it affected the population in South Africa, this surge could both peak and decline quickly. I want to say to you what I say to my family and friends: please take care of yourself during these challenging times. Many of us are struggling but there are resources to help. Reach out to a friend or colleague. Call CDSPI’s Member’s Assistance Program (MAP) to get confidential counseling or other resources at 1-844-578-4040. Here at CDA, we appreciate that good mental health is what allows dentists to care for the oral health of others. We have been working with the Mental Health Commission of Canada and our provincial and territorial dental associations to offer mental health training courses specifically tailored to dentistry. Look for more details on these programs in 2022. As well, we’re launching the CDA Secure Send app to help dentists communicate with their teams or other dentists on the go (p. 13). The app allows you to share files, including radiographs, and other communications safely and in compliance with privacy legislation, from your phone or tablet. When I talk with younger colleagues, they emphasize the ease and efficiency of having such mobile technology. I’m also excited that the CDA Secure Send app will make my own work more convenient. CDA has also recently released two resources that are close to my heart because they help provide optimal care for people with special health care needs. Both new tools help oral health professionals provide seamless, person-centred care to patients and families. The CDA Dental Treatment Case Complexity Form and Recommendations is an assessment tool to help dentists and the dental team make treatment or referral decisions when seeing persons with special health care needs. It was co-developed by CDA’s National Coordinating Working Group on Access to Care and clinician members of the Canadian Society for Disability and Oral Health. The CDA Dental Patient with Special Health Care Needs Transition Process includes resources to help guide patients, families, caregivers and oral health care providers through the process of transitioning a patient with special health care needs from one practice to another, most commonly from a pediatric to an adult practice (p. 16). Even as we weather the challenges caused by the pandemic, the profession continues to advance, guided by our deep commitment to service in our communities and the health of our patients. Let’s take care of ourselves—and each other—so that we can take care of Canadians. From the President 7 Issue 1 | 2022 | CDA atWork