Getting the whole family together
NewsPosted by: Dental Design 2nd January 2022
BACD Annual Conference 2022 – On The Shoulders Of Giants
There were many highlights of the BACD 18th Annual Conference for individuals this year, but few were as important as the opportunity to come together as a community, a support network and a family. Echoed in the sentiments of BACD Board Members and delegates alike, this sense of belonging remains a massive advantage for all who engage with the Academy. That’s not even to mention the internationally renowned names that made up this year’s speaker line-up and the outstanding support shown by the trade.
Ultimately, everything the BACD does is designed to help clinicians deliver better dentistry to their patients. Chris McConnell, now the Immediate Past President of the organisation, said: “We want to be the go-to organisation for ethical cosmetic dentistry”, and the Academy has indeed grown its influence with national and professional media in recent years. At the heart of every session and every discussion throughout the event was the importance of clinical excellence – something which was also demonstrated by professionals at the forefront of the field.
The Conference itself opened with an insightful motivational speech from Colin MacLaughan – former SAS soldier with many an inspiring story to share. He drew interesting parallels between his own experiences in the military and dentistry, citing the importance of planning, agility, determination and review/debrief within both professions.
Following on was the event’s headline speaker, a giant in the field of restorative and aesthetic dentistry from the US – Dr Frank Spear. His full day talk focused on Bob Barkley’s quote that “The goal of dentistry is to make the patient worse at the slowest possible rate”. That means conserving maximum natural tissue and prolonging the treatment journey as much as possible, carefully balancing risk versus reward, management versus cure. Frank showed astonishing cases where extraction was avoided and patients had retained their natural teeth for several decades with minimal intervention. He shared algorithms for decision making, helping delegates to select cases where extraction would be indicated and to identify others that could be managed in a more conservative way – even saving the tooth for another few years is beneficial for the patient.
Delegate Dr Stuart Goddard of Spires Dental Clinic commented:
“Frank Spear was the reason I came to the Conference. It’s great to see him in person and I really enjoyed the session.”
The first day was brought to a monumental end with the legendary BACD Gala Dinner. Delegates dressed in their finest to enter the stunning winter wonderland for an evening of delicious food, dancing and fun with colleagues from across the Academy. A perfect example of the sense of family that binds the BACD, this was an excellent opportunity to enjoy some downtime with lifelong friends.
Despite dancing into the early hours, delegates were back on Saturday morning for the next round of educational sessions. Dr Javier Tapia filled the morning by encouraging delegates to think differently about their dentistry. Continuing the theme of ethical and minimally invasive cosmetic dentistry, he said “Stop thinking about preservation of restorations, start thinking about preservation of the tooth”. He offered a wealth of practical advice and top tips to help delegates deliver conservative restorations that last. Among other topics, he covered isolation, cusp coverage and bonding, citing that the “operator factor is the most critical one” when it comes to the success of posterior restorations.
The day was wrapped up with insight sessions delivered by Dr Chris Orr, Dr Stephane Reinhardt and Dr Karla Soto, who discussed the important of ortho-restorative multidisciplinary treatment, highlighted the capabilities of Invisalign and maximising on the benefits afforded by digital workflows.
Throughout the event, delegates had time to browse the trade exhibition and interact with various dental manufacturers, service providers and product experts. The BACD remains extremely appreciative of the support received from industry – only with their help can the organisation present such a fantastic educational event. Delegates were encouraged to engage with all stands by following the trade hunt – once individuals had visited all the stands, they were entered into a competition with prizes worth more than £21,000!
Platinum Sponsor, Boutique Whitening, commented
“There was excellent organisation for this event, we received great customer engagement at the stand and the socials were enjoyable.”
The BACD Annual Conference also provided the opportunity for delegates to get hands-on with a day of practical sessions on Thursday, delivered by several trade organisations. These workshops included a SmileFast activation course, digital dentures (3Shape), rubber dam placement (Coltene), B.O.P.T. vertical preparation concept (Sweden & Martina), Smile Design (SmileFy), Invisalign (Aligner Consulting), biomimetic posterior composite restorations (GC) and the overview posterior workflow (Kulzer).
Upon reflection, delegate Dr David Watson from Beacon Dentalcare, said:
“The speakers have been superb and the content very impressive. I also had a good night at the Gala Dinner. I have been a member of the BACD for about 15 years and the greatest benefit has always been the networking and the access to people – they are my dental family.”
Dr Rory Dewhurst from Smile Studio Penarth added:
“I was really looking forward to hearing from Frank Spear, and Javier Tapia was great as well. There has been a good range of topics covered and the Gala meal was excellent too.”
After another amazing event, there is even more reason not to miss the next BACD Annual Conference – registration is now live on the website! Don’t miss headline speaker Dr Lincoln Harris, as well as Mark Bowes, Howie Gluckman, Nazariy Mykhaylyuk, Anthony Mak and many more!
BACD 19th Annual Conference
New Horizons
9-11 November 2023
London
