Orlando Monteiro da Silva

At the moment I am about to leave the presidency of the Ordem dos Médicos Dentistas – Portuguese Dental Association (OMD), elected and serving five consecutive terms, I hereby present a short review and some facts regarding these last 20 years.  

Since then it was possible to:

• Increase the population’s accessibility to oral health from 15% in 2001 to more than 60%. To this end, Dentists who graduated from Portuguese Universities (currently registering approx. 11,000 active Dentists in Portugal) proved to be fundamental. And together, we achieved:
  • In private practice, integrated in a network comprised of approximately 6000 dental clinics that cover 97% of the national territory;
  • With the aid of the Dentist Voucher Programme, financed by the Portuguese Government, 3.5 million Portuguese were able to access dental care;
  • And, recently, with the integration of about 120 Dentists in the Portuguese National HealthCare System, a number that is foreseeable to increase to more than 300 in the next three years, in a concept of Universal Health Coverage.

• Achieve full recognition of dentistry as a medical profession, and dentists as “oral health doctors”, expanding their role and intervention in society, by introducing specialties and sectoral competences in dentistry.
• Successfully combating the previously high rate of illegal practice of the profession.
• License and certification of all dental clinics.
• Creation of an Oral Health Observatory, through which it was possible to study and promote both the profession and oral health, using barometers, campaigns and studies, providing public visibility and also revealing to be proficient in promoting more effective public health policies.
• Integrating the concept of Oral Health/General Health in the Portuguese society, an essential contribution towards life quality of the Portuguese population.   
• Implementing Continuous Training that will tend to be free for all Dentists.
• Deeming OMD’s Congress as one of the largest and most renowned in Europe.
• Implementing specialities and regulating sectoral competences in Dental Medicine.
• During this period, we unquestionably managed to project our profession effectively and made it relevant in the eyes of both society in general and at the level of public decisional platforms.  

At a national level, and as President of the Ordem dos Médicos Dentistas, it was also possible to occupy prestigious and prominent positions for all of us: 

• At the Presidency of CNOP – National Council of the Professional Orders;
• At the Economic and Social Committee;
• In numerous working groups and dialogue forums with political agents and civil society in general.

At an international level through the active participation in the most representative organisations of the profession, namely:

• In the Presidency and Committees of FDI – World Dental Federation;
• In the Presidency and Committees of CED – Council of European Dentists; 
• In the Presidency of FEDCAR – Federation of the European Dental Competent Authorities and Regulators;
• In several partnerships established with Portuguese speaking countries, namely Brazil.

Today, Portuguese Dentists and Dental Medicine benefit from automatic recognition within the European Union and are considered valuable professionals worldwide.  

I affirm, with the utmost pride in the profession, that the dental medicine practised in our country extends far beyond the limits of our borders. We are at the forefront of dentistry, recognized as a producer of knowledge and added value for Portugal.

Approximately 96% of OMD’s members practice in the private sector, in a country where, over the years, the public health system has repeatedly forgotten oral healthcare as a fundamental area for public health, which it undoubtedly is. As such, OMD maintained ongoing contacts with public decision-makers, creating a logic of permanent negotiation aiming, on the one hand, to defend the profession, Dentists and the general population and on the other, not less frequently, preventing harmful measures or inadequate policies from being implemented.

As other liberal professions, we have faced very difficult challenges during these last twenty years:

• The economic deregulation of the profession, as a result of globalisation;
• The economic crisis created by the subprime crisis and the subsequent Troika intervention;
• The consequent emigration of Dentists, frequently forced to do so, in the search for employment opportunities, namely in other European countries;
• The excess of pre-graduate education directly interfering in the offer of services;
• And, more recently, the crisis resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, that lead to the suspension of all dental activity during approximately 45 days.

We leave an exemplarily managed and economically robust Order, with a body of employees and collaborators that constitute an enormous added value in the day-to-day of this Institution.

I, therefore, leave, with great pride in this collective journey, and total conviction of having served the Ordem dos Médicos Dentistas and the profession to the best of my effort, and, above all, with a clear conscience of accomplishment during my time in service.

The vast experience acquired will be applied to national or international projects related to health and that deem to be challenging.

I wish my successor, my colleague Miguel Pavão, and all the members of his team, the greatest success for the mandate that is about to begin.  I declare my utter availability to collaborate with him and our Order, to the extent considered appropriate, especially in the handover to the next Governing Bodies, that will formally take office on July 18^th. 

Thank You!

Orlando Monteiro da Silva

From the 10th to the 12th November Ordem dos Médicos Dentistas (Portuguese Dental Association) organized its annual congress, in Porto. This year we celebrated 25 years of congress, a milestone for Portuguese dental medicine. Already a recognized brand!

PDA 25th Congress (2016)
Total congress participants – 3 686
Number of scientific presentations – 161
Hands-on courses – 95
Number of entries at Expo-Dentária – 12 404

Since 1992, when the first Portuguese Dental Congresses took place, the affirmation and credibility of dental medicine as a regulated profession increased in Portugal over the years. During those years, Portuguese dentists shared the passionate dedication to dental medicine that made all the difference in the affirmation and growth of this Congress that nowadays is visited by more than 12 thousand participants.

It is always a huge effort, given that the organization is mostly composed by volunteers, but at the end we are filled with an enormous pride and feeling of mission accomplished!

OMD congress is also an important moment to create closer ties between colleagues from different parts of the world.

As such, we organized a round table discussion concerning “Regulation in Dentistry: Recognition of Professional Qualifications”, where we had as guests/speakers: Andrew I Spielman (Associate Dean for Academic Affairs NYU); Gilbert Bouteille, (President of the National Association of Dental Surgeons in France); Gerhard Seeberger (FDI – World Dental Federation Speaker); Marco Landi (President of the Council of European Dentists); Óscar Castro Reino (President of the Spanish General Dental Council); Cédric Grolleau (Jurist of the National Association of Dental Surgeons in France); Filipa Carvalho Marques (Director of OMD’s Legal Department), and me as OMD President.

Can health be seen as a common economic activity? It was the main idea and the question that launched the debate.

The opinions of the speakers in this short coverage video:

At the Opening Ceremony we had the presence of the Secretary of State Assistant and of Health, Fernando Araújo and guests from national and international institutions and ambassadors.

(…) “Even in 1963, the year I was born, Bob Dylan wrote in the chorus of the song that was to become a true anthem, “(…) times are changing …”

They were, of course! Maybe at a more sociologic level, regarding habits and behaviours.

Then, as now, times continue to change…

We are currently experiencing a time of profound changes, levered essentially by globalization, currently in course, the internet and new communication and information technologies, among others.” (…)

See full speech here (pdf)

“For the times they are a-changing” we have to be ready!

The course of dental regulation in Portuguese-speaking countries was also another focus at OMD congress. Challenges faced by dentists of the Portuguese-speaking countries are very different but still very important to share experiences and opinions, in view of the population’s increasing demand for quality oral health care.

Portuguese-speaking Dental Association Forum: Representatives of the profession and industry from Brazil, Cape Verde, Mozambique and Portugal.

In addition to the scientific and social professional programme, Expo-Dentária occurs simultaneously, a dental equipment and material exhibition that boasts more than 12 thousand participants, and is currently the greatest oral health exhibition in Portugal. Expo-Dentária’s official opening was held in the morning with a flash mob for everyone’s surprise.

As a passionate runner, I highlight the moment when we received the Portuguese Winner Ultrarunner Carlos Sá at our congress. To overcome everyday challenges, we have to be resilient. Do not give up on obstacles. Carlos Sá, winner of the 2013 Badwater Ultramarathon, California (217 km) in 24:38min, is an inspiration.