Tracy Garland of National Interprofessional Initiative on Oral Health Received Special Recognition from Edward B. Shils Entrepreneurial Fund

Philadelphia-- October, 2014 -- The Edward B. Shils Entrepreneurial Fund presented a 2014 Special Recognition Award to Tracy Garland for leadership of the National Interprofessional Initiative on Oral Health (niioh.org ). The Initiative is establishing a new norm of effective collaboration across the health professions. The Award was presented on Wednesday, October 29, 2014 at the Union League of Philadelphia.

Ms. Garland, a former foundation executive, established NIIOH in 2009 with the support of key philanthropic partners and a vision that everyone should have access to oral health services and referrals in the context of their medical home – delivering on the promise of whole person care.  Through her leadership, the Interprofessional Initiative has:

1) A robust network of interprofessional leaders from Family Medicine, Pediatrics, Nursing and the Physician Assistant professions and Dentistry committed to Oral Health.

2) A successful online interprofessional oral health curriculum, Smiles for Life (www.smilesforlifeoralhealth.org), designed by and for primary care clinicians, with over 250,000 users since its online launch in 2010.

3) Public support from the highest levels of organized dentistry (ADA) and federal government (HRSA).

4) Robust and active Interprofessional programming including the Smiles for Life Steering Committee, the Oral Health Nursing Education and Practice project at NYU, the Physician Assistant Oral Health Leadership Initiative, and the backbone support of the NIIOH Program Office.

The Interprofessional Initiative has provided the vision and impetus for the health field to take an “IP (interprofessional ) approach” to meeting patients’ oral health needs. The NIIOH has had a dual focus of putting oral health into primary care education and practice. “This is a home run for primary care…great opportunity to demonstrate how to hit the triple aim by providing whole person care” explains Judith Haber, PhD, ARPN, leader of OHNEP Initiative, the Nursing arm of the NIIOH.

In addition to serving as Director of the National Interprofessional Initiative on Oral Health, Ms. Garland is Senior Advisor for the DentaQuest Foundation, an Advisor to the U.S. National Oral Health Alliance, and Principal of Tracy Garland Consulting. She has served as Chief Financial Officer of the Delta Dental Plan of Washington and Chief Executive Officer of the Washington Dental Service Foundation.  Ms. Garland is based in the Seattle, Washington area.

About the Shils Fund

The Shils Fund was established to honor the legacy of Edward B. Shils, a dentist, leader of the dental manufacturer’s community and professor at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Shils established the Wharton Entrepreneurial Center to encourage innovative business practices. The Shils Fund was established to honor individuals and organizations who exemplify the mission and spirit of Ed Shils and to help foster innovation and initiative in current and future healthcare entrepreneurs. The Fund recognizes “key pioneers and trailblazers in Oral Health innovation in order to support individuals, organizations and programs that positively influence the dental community and public Oral Health arena.

About NIIOH

Founded in 2009, the National Interprofessional Initiative on Oral Health (niioh.org) is a consortium of funders and health professionals whose vision is that dental disease can be eradicated. The mission of the Interprofessional Initiative is to engage primary care clinicians to be alert to their patients’ oral health needs, ready and willing to deliver oral health preventive services to patients of all ages, effective at partnering with dental specialists, and able to learn from, with and about each other. The activities of the Interprofessional Initiative are made possible as a result of funding from The DentaQuest Foundation, the Washington Dental Service Foundation, the Connecticut Health Foundation and the REACH Healthcare Foundation. For more information, please visit http://www.niioh.org/.