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Major projectsHebrew University AO Dental School Children’s Clinic Paedodontic Department Projectors, x-ray viewers etc Refurbishment of Prosthodontic clinic as part of the “Bridge the Gap” Campaign Tel-Aviv Dental School Recovery Room Microbiology Department New Lecture Theatre Focus on Future Campaign Radio-Visiography Unit Special Project for the Dean Poriyah Hospital Maxillo-Facial Department Dental surgery in the main hospital so patients would not need to be transferred Equipment for Maxillo-Facial Department Ezrat Cholim clinic in Jerusalem Dental surgery equipment Sarah Herzog Hospital Dental Surgery equipment Jaffa Institute Clinic Dental surgery equipped and new instrument provided
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LibrariesJerusalem School – Books and journals for students and staff updated with gifts when available. Tel Aviv School – Books and journals for students and staff updated with gifts when available. Poriyah Hospital Maxillo-Facial Unit – Special library in Memory of Dr David Rabin, founder member of the London Chapter who held every office and gave great service to the London Chapter.
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Recognition of Student AchievementAnnual student prizes at Hebrew University Dental School: In memory of Professor Ino Sciaky for final year student in Oral Medicine In memory of Prof. Julius Michman for 4th year student in Prosthodontics The Murray Woolf Prize in Orthodontics for final year student These currently provide $500 each annually and a certificate. Essay prize competitions at London Dental Schools in various subjects periodically.
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Student Grants and fellowshipsSupport grant for Israeli student at Glasgow University for M.Sc. in electron microscopy. Support given to the programme for graduates to study in British Canadian and US dental schools for 1-3 years. Grant to final year student at London University to complete studies. Special support for registrar from Poriyah to study at Queen Elizabeth II Hospital in East Grinstead specialist Maxillo-Facial Unit. Support grants for electives by British students at Poriyah Hospital from Royal London and Guys, Kings & St Thomas’s Dental Schools of London University. Donor grant (possible $2000 – $8000) to Professor Zeles Dean of Dental Faculty Budapest University. Grant for research at Hebrew University Dental School from donor of 1,016.99 Euros.
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Special ProjectsOral hygiene programme instituted at the Ravenswood residential village for individuals with learning difficulties. Supported since 1991. Jewish relief for Jews in Kiev dental centre. Dental implants for victims of suicide bombs in Jerusalem. Anaesthetic equipment for special unit treating spastic children near London UK. The Trustees are always aware of the wider areas from which appeals are coming and consider each case to see if it can be covered by the limits of the Trust. However, the main emphasis still remains the provision of as much help as the funds will allow, and especially to the Tel Aviv and Haddassah dental schools. The last great project suggested by the Chapter Council of a fully equipped ambulance for Magen David Adom was handed over in Jerusalem in 2003 as reported in the newsletter. In all, and since 1972 when the Trust was founded, $1,272,750 has been distributed to those causes for which the Trust was established. We are indebted to the Trustees and the many supporters for the success of the London Chapter of Alpha Omega Charitable Trust over so many years. There have only been two previous Chairmen of the Trust, Bernard Herson and Harold Preiskel, and the new Chairman, Professor Andrew Eder, is determined to maintain the standard set. The work goes on.
Chairman's Welcome
I am honoured to stand before you as Chairman of the Alpha Omega Dental Society London.
I joined the London chapter as a student in my final year of King's College Dental Hospital in 1986 and have been a member ever since.
Before entering general dental practice. I was a Restorative house officer at University College Dental Hospital and I undertook extended postgraduate education at the Eastman Dental Institute Centre of Excellence University College London where I was awarded a distinction for the four-year Diploma in Implant Dentistry, winning the overall prize for Outstanding Achievement in the year group.
I also hold a Certificate in Restorative Dentistry and a Certificate in Surgical and Prosthetic Implantology from the Eastman Dental Institute as well as a diploma in General Dental Practice from the Royal College of Surgeons.
I have been a course mentor for dentists studying for the DGDP.
I have been in general dental practice for 37 years in East Finchley and have really enjoyed the continuity of looking after three generations in my local community.
I have vivid memories of being approached in the dental school to join this fabulous society and of attending an introductory meeting with Geoffrey Lesser. He was doubly qualified and divided his time between ENT practice and dentistry.
The society's values of fraternalism, charity and education were highlighted and I am extremely pleased to be able to carry the ethos forwards. I would like to thank Jayne Cooper for chairing Alpha Omega this year and her dedicated and professional input to the society. She was full of boundless enthusiasm and contributed a huge amount of her time most especially with Young Alpha Omega in spite of having a busy and full time position as a specialist orthodontist.
I would also like to thank the whole committee for supporting me in producing this program especially Diana Spencer and Eddie Scher.
Over the years I have valued immensely the knowledge I have gained from the evening meetings and also the friendships and camaraderie, which have developed during the pre-meeting gatherings.
I am a great believer in postgraduate education and have always strived to improve my knowledge. I feel that this has enriched my career, my job satisfaction and benefited my patients.
I am proud to carry the baton forwards on the extremely successful Young Dentist Alpha Omega programme we run which supports our young members in their first years as Students and qualified dentists and I am reminded of the support I gained in my early years.
I am excited that the chapter with its amazing committee have put together a really great program. I would like to encourage each and every one of you to support the program, enjoy the evening meetings, bring colleagues and friends with you and help us support each other and the charities we support.
This year's program consists of six face-to-face meetings and two zoom meetings. I am extremely grateful to the highly distinguished lecturers who have given up their time freely to bring us the advances and developments in their specialist fields.
We start the year's program with Dr Linda Greenwell presenting the latest aesthetic contemporary restorative strategies for treating advanced tooth wear including the latest digital planning workflows.
Professor Mike Lewis will present a lecture on oral mucosal conditions and the causes of orofacial pain. The lecture will include a self-assessed interactive quiz style.
Professor Jon Suzuki (on zoom from America) will update us on the implications of bisphosphonate
therapy, osteochemonecrosis of the jaw and strategies to minimise risks during dental procedures .
Dr John Milne, past senior dental advisor to the CQC, will help us to prepare for a CQC inspection, show us examples of good and poor practice and help us understand the need for a team approach to good compliance.
Dr Jimmy Makdissi will lecture on the principles of CBCT, current applications to general dental practice, legal responsibilities and training requirements.
Professor Eddie Scher and Mr Brian Mathews will demonstrate how meticulous treatment planning, digital diagnostic wax ups and tools will enable patients to consent to sophisticated implant treatment plans. Their patients confided in them that the treatment had changed their lives!
The chairman always has the final word and I will round off the season with a lecture on clinical dental photography. Equipment selection, settings, tricks and tips and how to have fun with your camera inside and outside of the surgery.
All of our lecturers have given up their time freely with no honorarium. All of the income we make from our membership is given to the Alpha Omega London Chapter Charitable trust which helps us disperse funds to a number of great causes.
In the UK we support oral health programs for the special care residents at Norwood formally Ravenswood and the Tree House School, the National Centre of Autism.
In Israel we support the Dental Schools and Hospitals providing equipment and facilities to enhance patient care outcomes as well as undergraduate, postgraduate and specialty training at the Hadassah and Tel Aviv Dental Schools and the Rambam Medical Centre.
In our commitment to Tikun Olam, (improving and repairing our ailing world), I reflect on the challenging and difficult times we are experiencing both in Israel and in the UK. We can all contribute by working together with kindness and care to teach ourselves and our community to share our knowledge and support anyone in our profession who need our advice, knowledge and friendship.
I am really looking forward to welcoming you all to this program.
The Alpha Omega London Charitable Trust
The Alpha Omega London Charitable Trust was established in 1972 and continues to be extremely active in its mission to support the ‘advancement of dental education, research and care, wherever it is needed’. The Trustees, who represent both the London Chapter and Trust, meet regularly to ensure appropriate and prompt distribution of funds to worthy causes always creating a positive social impact and ensuring the highest levels of governance.
Projects supported by the London Charitable Trust fall into four main areas harmonising with the over-arching ethos of Alpha Omega and have included the following over the past ten years:
UK Charities: supporting oral health assessments and dental hygiene programmes for special care residents at Norwood (formerly Ravenswood) and the TreeHouse School at the National Centre for Autism.Dental Schools in Israel: providing equipment and facilities to enhance patient care outcomes as well as undergraduate, postgraduate and specialty training at the Hadassah and Tel Aviv Dental Schools and the Rambam Medical Centre.
Overseas Clinics and Charities: essential funding to improve care and promote oral health projects at Aleh Negev, Beit Issie Shapiro, Dental Volunteers for Israel, Israeli Army Dental Corps, Jaffa Dental Institute, Luba Slome and Yad Sarah. A fully equipped ambulance was gifted to Magen David Adom. Surgical and medical equipment has also been donated to the Poriya and Laniado Hospitals. Further afield, support has been directed towards reducing levels of primary dental disease in Eastern European communities through World Jewish Relief.
Prizes and Awards: the Trustees are very keen to support our younger colleagues who are the future of our profession and of Alpha Omega. In this regard, the following postgraduate prizes are awarded at Hadassah: The Ino Sciaky Prize in Oral Medicine, The Michman Prize in Prosthodontics and The Murray Woolf Prize in Orthodontics. Closer to home, and in order to increase the local profile and awareness of Alpha Omega, several undergraduate elective scholarships for dental students and postgraduate travel scholarships for specialist trainees are offered each year. In addition, and in association with the Zamet family, the Dr John Zamet Memorial Prize in Periodontal Research is awarded every two years to a postgraduate specialist trainee in periodontology in the UK.
The London Charitable Trust is delighted to work so closely with the London Chapter of Alpha Omega and to enjoy excellent relationships with so many of our senior colleagues in the dental trade who are extremely generous supporters of our widening participation and social enterprise initiatives.
We are indebted to the two previous Chairs of the Charitable Trust, Dr Bernard Herson and Professor Harold Preiskel, the Trustees and our many members and supporters for raising almost £750,000 to date. We thank you and are determined to continue with this important work.
Trust Council 2024/25
Dr Kevin Silver (Chair, AO London)
Professor Andrew Eder (Chair of Trustees)
Dr Mervyn Druian (Trustee & Past AO President)
Dr Stephen Handelsman (Trustee & Secretary)
Dr Aron Marcus (Trustee)
Dr Kevin Silver (Chair, AO London)
Dr Eddie Scher (Trustee)
Dr David Selouk (Treasurer)
Dr John Wolffe (Trustee & Past AO President)
Interested in membership?
Alpha Omega dental fraternity is a non-sectarian fraternity and although we have a Judaic heritage, we welcome members of all faiths and backgrounds. If you are not already a member of Alpha Omega, why not consider joining. In doing so you get friendly camaraderie, quality CPD and will be supporting charitable dental causes, around the world.
The Council
Many members may not be aware that there is a core group of council members who literally make Alpha Omega tick and I feel it only right that they be recognised for their efforts. We cannot deliver this kind of program without their constant hard work behind the scenes. We always need new members on Council, so please approach any of us, if you are interested in helping out.
Chairman
Dr Kevin Silver
Secretary
Dr Veronica Morris
Membership Secretary, Marketing and Website
Diana Spencer
Immediate Past Chairman
Dr Jayne Cooper
Student Liaison and Young AO Coordinator
Ella Levene
Past Chair Advisor
Richard Horwitz
Past Chair Advisor
Jonathan Lack
Past Chair Advisor
Aron Marcus
Past Chair Advisor
Stephen Handelsman
Treasurer and Young AO Coordinator
David Selouk
Scientific Committee Chair
Eddie Scher
Trade Liaison
Adele Kendler
Social Media
Charlotte Leigh
Member at large
Nina Tetra (International Board of Director AO)