ADHA and Johnson & Johnson Announce
Honorees of HYGIENIST HERO(R) Recognition Progra

Chicago, July 2, 2009— The American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA) and Johnson & Johnson Healthcare Products, Division of McNEIL-PPC, Inc., are pleased to announce the honorees of this program designed to salute dental hygienists’ outstanding commitment to promote oral hygiene in their local communities. The honorees were honored during the Saturday Plenary Session and ADHA Award Presentations at ADHA’s 86th Annual Session in Washington, D.C., on June 20.

To be considered for the HYGIENIST HERO™ Recognition Program, dental hygienists submitted essays describing inspirational activities they have developed and led to enhance oral health care in their communities.

The 2009 HYGIENIST HERO® Honorees are:

• Jennifer Via Clayton, RDH of Boise, Idaho. Clayton began the Idaho Special Olympics Special Smiles program in 2001. At the Special Olympics 2009 World Winter Games in Idaho, she and a team of nearly 300 volunteers from around the world screened and treated athletes at the first-ever “Miles for Smiles” mobile dental unit.

• Denise Maus, RDH, BS of Wichita, Kan. After several years of volunteering at the Kansas Mission of Mercy (KMOM), a free dental care project sponsored by the Kansas Dental Charitable Foundation, Maus was asked to create a patient education component for the next KMOM project. She organized dozens of volunteers and nearly 600 patients were instructed on proper brushing and were provided with pamphlets, toothbrushes and floss.

• Linda Meeuwenberg, RDH, MA, MA of Winter Park, Fla. Meeuwenberg is the president of Professional Development Association, Inc. and professor emeritus of Ferris State University in Michigan. She is a volunteer with the Retired Seniors and Volunteer Program and active in the International Rotary and the Chamber of Commerce. She has been published in various formats and has delivered hundreds of CE courses.

• Ilya Babiy, RDH, BSDH of Portland, Ore. Babiy is a volunteer with the Medical Teams International mobile dental clinics in Portland, Oregon. In 2007, he began volunteering several days each month on the organization’s traveling dental vans at clinics sponsored by local churches, drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers, hospitals, public schools and social service organizations.

• Patricia Doyle, RDH, BS, FADPD of Seattle, Wash. Doyle, who currently works in private practice, has volunteered at Harborview Medical Center, Mental Health Services, Outpatient Programs since 1981. She also created and manages an annual holiday gift project drawing community donations that reach 600 Harborview mental health patients. Additionally, she has presented numerous talks, case studies and table clinics regionally and nationally to raise awareness of issues regarding oral health care for persons with mental illness.

• Judith Shimamoto, RDH, BA of St. Louis, Mo,—presently living and working on Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands. Shimamoto has been a clinical dental hygienist for 37 years, mostly working in private practice in St. Louis. She has also taught at Lewis & Clark Community in Godfrey, Ill. For the past eight years, she has been working on a military installation in the Marshall Islands with both the American and Marshallese communities.

• Diana L. Corbin, RDH of Flint Hill, Va. Corbin works full-time in pediatric dentistry and is the volunteer administrator and preventive coordinator of the Culpeper Dental Clinic. She recruits and coordinates the volunteers, interviews patients, schedules appointments and ensures each patient has a plan to maximize their visit.

• Dona Gabzdyl, RDH, BS, MBA of Elk Grove Village, Ill. Once the state of Illinois passed a general supervision bill into law allowing registered dental hygienists to provide oral health care to those with limited access to care, Gabzdyl pledged to make a positive difference in her community: to serve the underserved populations by providing comprehensive oral health care through the Northwest Community Healthcare Mobile Dental Clinic Medical Outreach Program.

• Lisa Handa, BS, RDH, RDHAP of San Mateo, Calif. Handa is a graduate of the University of California, San Francisco and the University of the Pacific/Center for Special Needs, and is one of 260 Registered Dental Hygienists in Alternative Practice (RDHAP) in California. She is the president and community health chair of the Peninsula Dental Hygienists’ Association and co-chair of the Public Health Council for the California Dental Hygienists’ Association.

• Jessica Huffman, RDH, BSDH of Charlotte, N.C. Over the past five years, Jessica has focused on providing care and education to underprivileged children and young adults. She spends her time giving oral health presentations to elementary students, providing preventive care and education to underserved children on the mobile dental bus, volunteering for Give Kids A Smile Day and educating young pregnant mothers on effective oral care for themselves and their new babies.

ADHA is the largest national organization representing the professional interests of more than 150,000 dental hygienists across the country. Dental hygienists are preventive oral health professionals, licensed in dental hygiene, who provide educational, clinical and therapeutic services that support total health through the promotion of optimal oral health. For more information about ADHA, dental hygiene or the link between oral health and general health, visit ADHA at http://www.adha.org.

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