Staffing Updates - November 2022

November 2022

It has been a busy fall and we are pleased to share some new and familiar faces at Schulich Dentistry.

Samantha and JessicaDental Assistants Samantha Forrest (top photo, left) and Jessica Titus are excited to be working together again, having previously worked together in a local private practice. Samantha has been with Schulich Dentistry since March in a contract role, and Jessica's first day was November 14th. They are both happy to be part of Stephanie Durnin's dedicated team of DAs.

Joy and LianeJoy Zhou (bottom photo, left) has been with Schulich Dentistry since March 2020 as a dental assistant but has now joined Courtney D'Ariano's team as an administrative assistant in the Graduate Orthodontics clinic where she enjoys working with "...nice co-workers, smart residents, and experienced instructors." Liane Penney's first day as an administrative assistant on Courtney's team was November 7 and she shared that she is impressed with the welcoming and helpful staff.

Please give them all a warm welcome when you see them in the halls.

Erin Robertson was appointed to the role of Clinic Technology Officer – Dental Patient Management System last month. Erin will report directly to Information Services with a dotted line to Sylvie Richer, Dentistry's Manager of Clinic Operations. Erin has been backfilling this role for the past few months and has worked closely with Sylvie providing IT support to the clinic team and our students. 

We also have several notable departures to share.

IPAC & CQI Manager Sydney Van Meerbergen's last day was November 24th. Over the past two years, Sydney has been instrumental in overseeing the ongoing infection control needs in the clinic and has provided guidance to leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the summer of 2021 Sydney agreed to be the Acting Office Manager while we hired for that role, which is now held by Sylvie Richer. 

CDE Manager Adheesha Ratnayake's last day will be January 3, 2023. Adheesha joined our clinical team as our Patient Services Coordinator in 2020, working closely with the clinical administrative team. In June of 2021, Adheesha accepted a new role as Manager, Continuing Dental Education (CDE) and earlier this year, Adheesha took on the acting role as Manager, Dental Education while we recruited for the role which is now held by Terri MacDougall.

Mahdi Moslim, Technical Specialist has decided to retire as of February 1, 2023, after a successful career at Western University. Mahdi has worked at Dentistry since 2006 and during his time with us, Mahdi can often be seen on the clinic floor early each morning checking to ensure the dental chairs and equipment are ready for our students to begin patient care. His technical skills were greatly appreciated during the creation of temporary aerosol generating rooms (AGP) and during our enclosed operatory construction.

Please join us in wishing Sydney and Adheesha all the best in the next phases of their careers, and wishing Mahdi well as he embarks on this new chapter in his life! The recruitment for all three roles is underway.

We also continue to welcome new adjunct faculty – learn more about them here.