Congratulations to Dr. Paul Allison for recently receiving the Canadian Association of Public Health Dentistry Merit Award. This award recognizes an oral health professional who has shown a substantial commitment and contribution to public health dentistry through their actions.
“This award means a lot to me,” says Allison. “Recognition from the CAPHD represents recognition from practising specialists in the field and I’m honoured to be recognized by people who work in the broader health care field beyond academia. It also means that the work I am doing is having an effect and impact on the world of health and health care at a national level, which is very satisfying to know.”
Dr. Allison’s work has had meaningful impact in the community particularly during the first year of the pandemic. “I hope that, in a small way, myself and my colleagues have been able to provide help and support to our leaders and the broader profession during the pandemic,” says Allison. “When the pandemic started, I was very aware how difficult it was for dental professions across the country in all their elements - from educational settings, to private practice and to government agencies. With a lack of good quality information and research to base decisions upon it was extremely difficult for leaders and decision-makers to make important decisions and offer guidance to their communities. Given my previous roles, I was well placed to be able to make a contribution to help guide the profession, and I was happy to work with a team on creating and updating documents that identify the best evidence to support decision-making in Canadian dental care.”
Among his accomplishments to public health dentistry are:
Leading the preparation of a report for the Office of the Chief Dental Officer of Canada “Evidence to support safe return to clinical practice by oral health professionals in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic: A report prepared for the Office of the Chief Dental Officer of Canada.”
Acting as PI to lead a team of researchers that initiated a research program investigating COVID-19 infection rates and other pandemic-related issues in dentists, dental hygienists and dental schools across Canada.
Leading a national team of researchers in the research project “Oral health and oral health care of Canadians”. The three-year project is a collaboration with Statistics Canada’s existing Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS) to gather data and address oral health-related knowledge gaps.
Promoting and supporting improved access to oral health care in Canada and throughout the world through various channels including:
- Contributing to a report “Cost estimate of a federal dental care program for uninsured Canadians”, published by the Parliamentary Budget Office in Oct. 2020
- Participating in The Lancet Commission on Oral Health
- Working with the WHO to support the collection of data to inform the development of the WHO’s strategic plan for oral health care due to be published in 2023
- Authoring of a piece in The Conversation during the recent federal election campaign