Schedule of Events for Friday, April 25th
Choose the right combination of courses that best fit your educational needs. Attendees may choose from the following course types to fill their education agenda at PDA: General Sessions, Small Group Workshops and Hands-On Workshops.

Attendees are not required to pre-register for General Sessions and Keynote Sessions. Due to limited seating and materials in the workshops, pre-registration is required. If you would like to attend a workshop that is full please proceed to the meeting room the course is being held and sign up on the wait list. Wait lists for classes that are full will be set out 30 minutes prior to the start of the course. Five minutes prior to the start of the course, no-show seats will be given to the first names on the list until all seats are filled.

Hands-on Workshops are limited to 50 attendees and Small Group Workshops limited to 75, unless otherwise stated.
9:00 am to 11:00 am

Keynote Session - The Joys and Challenges of Clinical and Business Assisting
Rhonda Savage, DDS
So many dental practices struggle with success due to ineffective communication, changes in staff and changes in systems. The challenges of a smoothly run office include issues with scheduling, hygiene department effectiveness, patient reactivation, collections, insurance management, and office guidelines in dealing with patients and the use of computers and other technology. As a clinical or business assistant, your role is absolutely critical and important in determining the success of the practice.
As a former dental assistant and front office coordinator, Dr. Savage knows how hard you work for your doctor and the challenges that face you on a daily basis. This lively and informative program outlines ways to be efficient in your work that not only will increase productivity, but will create an office environment that has great camaraderie, an atmosphere of teamwork, and provides a great learning experience while caring for your patients.
In a nutshell, this course will give you dozens of take home and use ideas, make you leave feeling extremely valuable, and along the way, I will prove to you that dentistry is and should be: FUN, EXCITING and REWARDING for patients, dentists and especially, staff!
2 CE Credits
11:00 am to 1:00 pm

LUNCH WITH EXHIBITORS
1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
General Session - The Communication Express…Getting Your Message Across Successfully
Annamaria Phillips, CDA, EFDA, BBA, MA
Come along and ride the communication express. Strengthen and enhance your communication skills with your employer, co-workers, and patients. In this interactive workshop you will learn how to speak and be heard, resulting in getting your message across successfully. We will role play several day to day in-office scenarios and discover the secrets of gaining cooperation, dealing with difficult patients, confronting others, and master the techniques to enhance your effectiveness to maintain a successful communication style within your office.
2 CE credits
Hands-on Workshop – Hands on Implants: A Guide to Auxiliaries,
Lynn Mortilla, RDH and Lisa Wadsworth, CDA, RDH
This course will review and give the participant an opportunity to work with clean & sterile operatory setup, surgical & prosthetic kits, impression techniques, temporaries, cements, and hygiene tools.
2 CE credits - Fee $10
Commercial Support by:
Small Group Workshop – Intraoral Radiography: Basic Principles and Digital Application
Marie George, RDH, MS
This course presents practical information on intraoral radiography techniques to dental assistants with little or no formal training in dental radiography. The basic principles of intraoral radiography will be discussed, including application of these principles to digital radiography.
2 CE credits
Commerical Support by:
Small Group Workshop – Trouble Shooting Tips for Adhesive Dentistry
Victoria Wallace, CDA, RDA
With resin technology changing everyday, it is very important for the clinician to understand the correct delivery / application to achieve successful bonding. Dental professionals sometimes take bonding for granted, assuming all resins are the same…they are not.
This two hour course is packed full of tips for dental assistants to help insure proper bonding procedures, including a review of the different types of composites available. This is a fun, fast paced seminar is packed full of great tips. Be prepared to have fun and learn all at the same time.
2 CE credits
1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
CANCELLED - General Session - Learning in the Round
ADAA Roundtables
Join this ever-popular opportunity to trade ideas with other dental assistants in a small group setting while you are introduced to new products and techniques that will benefit your practice. Come away energized with new ideas and lots of product samples for your office. Door prizes will also be given away. Each session will cover different topics.
3 CE credits
Course attendance limited to 80

3:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Exhibits Open
3:30 pm - 5:30 pm
General Session - The Assistant's Role in Specialized Dentistry
Christine Taxin & Teresa Duncan, M.S.
As dentistry changes, so does the role of the assistant. Learn why implant and neuromuscular dental services require auxiliaries to expand their skill sets. Topics will include an overview of these fields as well as methods for incorporating newly learned skills into practice routines. The course will also cover how to obtain specialized training and stay abreast of dentistry's changing landscape. This class is ideal for both the new and experienced assistant.
2 CE credits
Commercial Support by:
Hands-on Workshop –Trouble Shooting Tips for Adhesive Dentistry
Victoria Wallace, CDA, RDA
Hold on! This workshop moves fast and is packed full of fun. We will learn techniques that you can easily implement into your every day clinical life. The workshop will also include “building a tooth” to experience the usage of new shades of composite. Procedural issues will also be discussed while you enhance your skills. You won’t want to miss this one.
2 CE credits – Fee $10
Commercial Support by:
Small Group Workshop – Behind the Mask: Is it safe? On Surfaces: What lives? Let's Hold Hands…and Share.
Nancy Andrews, RDH, BS
Participants will touch, feel, use and compare products and share their ideas – on respiratory protection and face protection, surface disinfection and hand hygiene. A variety of infection control products and approaches will be presented in this workshop as a way of exploring infection control concerns, concepts and realities in light of current documented knowledge. Misconceptions and common problems will be discussed.
2 CE credits
Small Group Workshop – Basic Oral Hygiene Instructions That Work
Rebecca Poling, DDS, MSD Learn how to teach patients effective oral hygiene methods that work! Using a multimedia CD developed by a team of dental hygienists, dentists, and orthodontists, teach patients about a healthy mouth, plaque, decalcification, decay, gum disease, brushing and flossing with and without braces, and flossing under a fixed retainer. Then practice teaching these procedures in the class. All materials provided.
2 CE credits
Course attendance is limited to 40
5:30 pm to 7:00 pm
Reception is Sponsored by: 3M ESPE

Networking Reception and Presentation of 3M ESPE's Dental Assistant of the Year Award

This award will recognize one dental assistant who has:
  • Proven to be an asset to the dental team.
  • Displayed superb chairside skill.
  • Demonstrated exceptional patient communication skills.

    The Innovative Dental Assistant of the Year will be:
  • Recognized during a special presentation with an award from 3M ESPE at the Professional Dental Assisting Conference in Norfolk, VA in April, 2008.
  • Announced and featured within the July 2008 issue of Dental Economics and in the new Dental Assisting Digest e-newsletter.
  • Provided with free registration to the 2008 Professional Dental Assisting Conference (valued at over $200), complimentary hotel accomodations and attendance to a special presentation at PDA 2008.
    •