Year in Review 2023
A Message from the Dean
At UAB School of Dentistry we have a proud history that spans more than seven decades. Our legacy has been marked by remarkable achievements in dental education, research, and clinical practice. Since our establishment in 1948, we have embraced cutting-edge materials and techniques, produced skilled and compassionate professionals, and impacted oral health locally and globally. Soon after our the start our school emerged as a leading dental program nationwide. We continue that tradition today.
While visionary leaders like Dr. Joseph Volker and Dr. Scotty McCallum set the stage, the milestone of our 75th anniversary is a tribute to the dedication of our faculty, staff, students, and alumni throughout the years. Your unwavering support has shaped our legacy.
As we celebrate our past successes, we recognize the ongoing importance of innovation and evolution in the ever-changing landscape of dentistry. In our 2023 annual report, you will see how we are strategically building elements within our four foundational pillars – research, education, patient care, and engagement – to set the stage for a strong and successful future as we continue to lead oral health.
I am deeply grateful for the dedication and passion of everyone within the UAB School of Dentistry family. With so many opportunities that lie before us I can’t wait to see what we accomplish together as we embark upon our next 25 years.
Here’s to 75 years of excellence and to many more years of shaping smiles and changing lives!
Warm regards,
Nicolaas Geurs, D.D.S., M.S.
Weatherford/Palcanis Endowed Professor
and Dean
UAB School of Dentistry
Read the Year in Review 2023
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Celebrating 75 years of excellence and innovation, UAB School of Dentistry continues to provide world-class dental education
Learn MoreFeatured Stories
Reinforcements to the Rescue
On Monday, July 10, the school welcomed its largest class in years. Dental deserts are a growing issue across Alabama. In response, the class size of the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry is growing as well.
‘Open Wide’ takes on new meaning in the SOD’s expanded Comprehensive Care Clinic
In August, the UAB School of Dentistry celebrated the completed expansion of the first-floor portion of the Comprehensive Care Clinic. The multidisciplinary, faculty-supervised clinic is where third- and fourth-year students provide general, cosmetic and operative dentistry services to patients. Along with other enhancements, the project added 40 new dental chairs on top of the already 76 chair Comprehensive Care Clinic on second floor. The space was redesigned with an open concept in mind that makes the dental team more accessible and approachable to patients, while also providing aspects that enhance patient privacy.
UAB School of Dentistry holds ribbon-cutting for first-of-its-kind clinic in Dothan
In the fall, in preparation of the grand opening, Dr. Nancy Hein Covert was selected as clinic director for UAB Dentistry Dothan. A longtime Dothan resident and University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry alumna, Dr. Covert, will also serve as the lead dentist for the new dental clinic in the Health Center South Medical Tower in Dothan, Alabama.
UAB Oral Oncology among first in Southeast to use augmented reality in head and neck cancer surgery
In the spring, The Oral Oncology Clinic at the University of Alabama at Birmingham announced new imaging technology called the Brainlab Mixed Reality Viewer to be offered to UAB patients. With this technology, surgeons at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB can take scans of a patient’s tumor and transform them into an image that allows for a 360-degree view of the interior and exterior of the skull and tumor, allowing surgeons to seamlessly move throughout compartments of the head and neck.
UAB researcher receives funding to study link between periodontitis and Alzheimer’s disease
In the fall, Ping Zhang, DDS, Ph.D., professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry, was awarded a five-year, $1.85 million R01 grant from the National Institute on Aging to study a link between periodontal disease and Alzheimer’s disease.
UAB researcher leads nation’s first dental implant registry
In the spring, The National Dental Practice-Based Research Network, founded and hosted at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry, became home to the nation’s first dental implant registry. Nicolaas Geurs, DDS, Weatherford/Palcanis Endowed Professor and chair at the UAB Department of Periodontology, is the principal investigator of the study. The total funding for this study is $2,354,358.