Limerick dental hygienist wins patient-nominated award
by Guy Hiscott
Limerick dental hygienist Gillian Shannon was named Kin Dental Hygienist of the Year 2017 at the Irish Dental Hygienists Association (IDHA) annual conference.
The award, created by Pamex, celebrates an exceptional dental hygienist in Ireland by asking patients up and down the country to nominate their hygienist for the accolade.
The nominations are then whittled down to five finalists through an anonymous selection process, with a judging panel consisting of Ann Holohan, Catherine Waldron and Anne O’Keefe.
Gillian told Irish Dentistry: ‘It is a great honour and I feel extremely fortunate to have been awarded Kin Dental Hygienist 2017. I am very passionate about my work and it has been hugely rewarding and encouraging to find that my patients acknowledged this by taking the time to nominate me.’
The five finalists were Mary Owens from Eyre Square Dental Practice in Galway, Gillian Shannon from Dr Eamonn Noonan Dental Surgery in Limerick, Karen White from Pembroke Dental in Carlow, Rebecca Hinds from Deansgrange Dental in Dublin, and Debbie Graham from Cork Dental Care.
The finalists were asked to compile a patient information leaflet on a given dental topic, which was then judged by a panel to select the winner.
Due praise
Of Gillian’s leaflet, the judges noted that it was ‘very well laid out, well referenced, patient-friendly’ and had a ‘good shelf shout-out’.
Gerard Murphy, field sales manager of Pamex, presented Gillian with a certificate, trophy, and an educational bursary worth €1,000. Gillian’s leaflet was also printed and distributed to dental practices nationwide by Pamex.
Nominations for next year’s Kin Dental Hygienist of the Year will open in March 2018.
Caption: Left to right – Ann Holohan (tutor), Gerard Murphy (Pamex), Gillian Shannon (winner), Catherine Waldron (tutor), Anne O’Keefe (tutor) and Annmarie Downey (Pamex rep)
Make sure to check out our 20th anniversary issue of Irish Dentistry, due out mid-January, for the full review of the Irish Dental Hygienists Association’s 30-year celebratory conference.
