Dr. Chester Douglass, Professor and Chair, Department of Oral Health Policy and Epidemiology at Harvard University School of Dental Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, has been named the 2007 recipient of the Behavioral Sciences & Health Services Research Award, presented by the International Association for Dental Research (IADR), convening today for its 85th General Session.
Dr. Douglass has been a leader in the field of academic dentistry and has made significant contributions to the development of policy regarding dental care. He has served on national committees on critical social and professional issues, such as the NIH Consensus Conference on Dental Implants, Institute of Medicine Committee on Access to Health, and the Institute of Medicine Committee on the Future of Dentistry. He also served as the President of the Behavioral Sciences & Health Services Research Group of the IADR. He is editor-in-chief of Oral Care Report and has served on the editorial boards of major scholarly journals, such as Medical Care and Compendium. Dr. Douglass’ major research interests are related to the epidemiology of dental diseases. He has added to the scientific base knowledge on the structure of dental care delivery and health outcomes, oral health of older adults, risk factors for tooth loss, fluoride exposure and osteosarcoma, and, most recently, on childhood dental caries.
Dr. Douglass received his DDS from Temple University and the MPH and PhD degrees from the University of Michigan School of Public Health. His post-doctoral training included being a USPHS Special Research Fellow at the University of Michigan, and the highly prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellow at the Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences.
The IADR Distinguished Scientist Award in Behavioral Sciences & Health Services Research is sponsored by generous funding from Sunstar Americas, Inc. and is one of the Distinguished Scientist Awards conferred annually by the IADR, representing the highest honor the IADR can bestow.
Dr. Douglass receives his award today at the Opening Ceremonies of the IADR's 85th General Session.