In the world of dentistry, achieving the prestigious Fellowship and Mastership Awards from the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD) is a remarkable accomplishment. This year, Heartland Dental proudly celebrates the outstanding success of the supported doctors who were recognized for their exceptional dedication and expertise at the AGD's 2023 Convocation Ceremony held in Las Vegas.
Heartland Dental's Commitment to Education
Heartland Dental’s continuing education offerings for supported doctors and team members are widely regarded as the best in the dental industry. In fact, Heartland Dental recently unveiled its new educational flagship – Heartland Dental University (HDU), reflecting the Company’s unwavering commitment to providing supported doctors, their teams, and business and office professionals the opportunities they need to grow personally and professionally.
Supported doctors trust the Company to help enhance their continued success as they provide world-class care and experiences to the communities they serve. And Heartland’s Doctor Mastery Program (DMP), along with the Fellowship with the Academy of General Dentistry (FAGD) and Mastership of the Academy of General Dentistry (MAGD), are significant recognitions for doctors who are striving to best address the actual needs of the dental industry.
In 2016, Heartland Dental introduced the Doctor Mastery Program (DMP), an initiative designed to help Heartland Dental supported doctors truly achieve personal and professional expertise. The Doctor Mastery Program was established to help supported doctors of all experience levels enhance their leadership skills and lead their teams with compassion and authenticity.
The five-to-seven-year program is open to all Heartland Dental supported doctors and consists of clinical training conducted by leading clinicians and helping to advance their mastery of complex dental care. The program helps participating dentists achieve a Fellowship with the Academy of General Dentistry (FAGD), increase their offices’ access to care, mentor other clinicians and help support the growth of their offices by the end of the program.
Upon completion of the Doctor Mastery Program, supported doctors can achieve their Fellowship (FAGD) or Mastership (MAGD) awards with the Academy of General Dentistry and receive a significant mastery bonus.
Many Heartland Dental supported doctors have achieved recognition for their achievements, with 30 supported doctors who are graduates of the company’s Doctor Mastery Program (DMP), and 137 supported doctors recognized with the Fellowship with the Academy of General Dentistry (FAGD) or Mastership of the Academy of General Dentistry (MAGD) to date. It is worth noting that 10% of Heartland Dental supported doctors carry a FAGD/MAGD status compared to 2% of the entire dental industry.
Celebrating Excellence
Celebrating Excellence: Heartland Dental-Supported Dentists Achieve FAGD/MAGD Recognition
The Academy of General Dentistry's 2023 Convocation Ceremony in Las Vegas was a momentous occasion, marking the celebration of 30 Heartland Dental supported doctors who achieved their FAGD/MAGD. As we applaud their remarkable achievements, we are honored to share a few of their thoughts directly.
Whitney Haidet, DMD, FAGD, FICOI: "I am very proud of receiving my FAGD. DMP played a very important role in pushing me to achieve my FAGD. I thought the task of getting 500 CE hours seemed daunting at first, but with all of the courses Heartland offers and the available free CE provided online, it was much easier than I thought. One of the fun parts about receiving my FAGD was being able to do so with my husband, Dr. Drew Haidet. We studied together, took the exam around the same time, and attended courses together."
Russell Morrow, DDS, FAGD: "It is such an honor to work for an organization that understands the secret to success for their doctors is not what their hands can produce, but rather the skills learned and applied. There is a great saying, 'The more you learn, the more you earn,' and there is not another company in the industry which values this principle more than Heartland Dental."
Jacob Berger, DMD, FAGD: "I wouldn't have committed to getting my FAGD without the DMP requirement. For that reason, I am grateful that the DMP challenged me to do something above and beyond."
Rasha Hussein, DDS, FAGD: "It was an honor for me to receive this award, especially that it expresses my commitment to excellent dental care through continuous learning and staying up to date with all dental advancements and research."
Danyal Z. Ahmed, DDS, FAGD: "FAGD has been a 'top 10 yearly goal' of mine for too long, and all the resources and guidance from Heartland are what made it possible. The icing on top was that this was another achievement I was able to accomplish with my brother!"
Ajal, Z. Ahmed, DMD, FAGD: "I’ve wanted to achieve fellow status for the longest time, and I'm thankful to Heartland Dental for the inspiration to refocus my efforts and (with the DMP) helping to givei us a timeline and pathway to achieve this goal. Special shout-out to my brother who's always pushing me to be better and achieve more."
Josh Ratcliff, DDS, FAGD: "The support from Heartland and the value they place on continuing education is what makes our doctors so successful! It was apparent by all of the fellow Heartland supported doctors that were also receiving their awards, several of whom I have known for a while now being with Heartland Dental for 10 years. I owe a lot of my success to Heartland’s unwavering support in my ability to be the best dentist I can be for my community."
Daniel D. Smith, DDS, FAGD: “It was a great experience to cover so many different topics in my continuing education pathway and it was very satisfying to finally achieve something that I had set out to do, starting with my Navy AEGD in 2007-2008.”
Christopher Bonesteel, DMD, FAGD: “I was extremely excited and honored to be able to stand up with so many other Heartland Dental supported doctors and receive my FAGD. I thought it was a great experience that shows the importance of continuing education and the responsibility that we have in this profession to maintain our skills and master them to provide better patient care and outcomes!"
Joseph Brier, DMD, FAGD: “I appreciate Heartland's exemplary CE course offerings that made up a large number of the hours I needed to attain the FAGD. This has been a fun and challenging achievement to pursue and has proven to myself, my patients, and my team my commitment to lifelong learning and growth in my profession.”
Erika Ynga, DDS FICOI, FAGD: "Receiving the Fellowship award has been a motivational experience to continue learning more techniques, providing innovative ways to treat my patients, and to deliver the best oral care."
Understanding Fellowship Award (FAGD) and the Mastership Award (MAGD)
The Fellowship Award (FAGD) and the Mastership Award (MAGD) are two of the highest honors bestowed by the Academy of General Dentistry. These accolades symbolize a dentist's commitment to lifelong learning and a dedication to providing the highest standard of patient care.
To achieve FAGD recognition, dentists must complete at least 500 hours of continuing dental education, including 350 hours of hands-on courses. This accomplishment demonstrates a dentist's passion for expanding their skill set and staying updated with the latest advancements in dentistry.
The MAGD award takes dedication to the next level, requiring dentists to accumulate an additional 600 hours of dental education, with 400 hours being hands-on courses. This achievement is a testament to a dentist's exceptional commitment to mastering various disciplines within dentistry.
If you are a dental professional looking for world-class operational systems, and access to university level, third-party accredited continuing education in advanced dentistry, Heartland Dental is the place to be. Visit here to learn more.