Organization of individuals with a common goal leads to great leaps of progress in any field. The same goes for dentists, whose art is furthered by the American Dental Association.
Like many professions,
especially those in the medical field, dentistry is more of a group effort than a collection of individuals. While each dentist is free and encouraged to set up his or her own practice, a group known as the American Dental Association links dentistry professionals around the country in order to further the profession.
Dentists are hardly ever alone when they are practicing. While they work on a patient, there is usually a hygienist or assistant at their side, and even when they're not, they are constantly side-by-side with fellow professionals around the United States of America through the American Dental Association.
While dentists are not technically part of the ADA itself, it is a group designed to further successes and advancements in the field. The group is always there for a dentist and provides support if any problems come up.
Based in Chicago, the ADA was founded in New York in 1859 and has over 150,000 active members. The largest and oldest dental organization in the world, it is linked with 55 state and regional organizations and over 500 local societies. Its mission is simply to promote, enhance and safeguard the field and its members around the nation.
At its headquarters, the ADA employs some 400 staff members. Its leadership is centered around a board of trustees that features a president, vice president and 17 trustees from around the nation. Extending beyond that is a 400-plus member house of delegates and 11 councils that study specific areas and policies related to the profession.
The Commission on Dental Accreditation also operates under the organization's leadership. It is the national accrediting body for all schools of dentistry as recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
The association also operates a trade publication known as the Journal of the American Dental Association and features a library with over 33,000 books and 17,000 editions of the journal.
The ADA Foundation is a charitable organization that funds various causes within the field, including research and education as well as disaster and disease relief.
The association also lobbies the United States Congress and works with lawmakers and their constituents around the country to promote the causes and needs of the dentistry profession and to support its well being into the future.
Dentists themselves look to the organization for guidance on certain topics, treatments, equipment and other vital components of their work. The group's seal of approval is earned through rigorous testing of both products and forms of treatment and serves as a barometer of sorts for the effectiveness and reliability of the subject.
Dentists themselves are experts in their own right when it comes to their chosen profession and are able to feed off of a knowledge and experience base they have earned through years of dedication to their work, but even the most veteran dentist benefits from the support, knowledge and resources offered by the ADA.