Every spring and fall, we profile just a few of our amazing graduates in our convocation handout. We proudly feature these stories here on Dal News. Congrats to all our new graduates!
Lisa MacDonald has known the dental profession was her calling for 15 years. Originally from Prince Edward Island, she applied and was accepted to a dental assisting program at a local college, but instead decided to leave her hometown and move to Halifax. It was not long before she started working in dental office administration.
After 10 years, she decided to apply to Dalhousie鈥檚 Faculty of Dentistry and is now graduating with a Diploma in Dental Hygiene 鈥斅爌art of the program's 50th anniversary graduating class.聽聽聽 聽
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MacDonald鈥檚 passion for the field comes first and foremost from her enjoyment of interacting with people and, more importantly, the opportunity to improve their lives.
鈥淎s a dental hygienist, you are at the front end of health-care screening because you see your patients every six months,鈥� she says. While many other health checkups get forgotten or postponed, MacDonald knows she has the opportunity to observe other health issues that may go undiagnosed or unnoticed.
MacDonald hopes to contribute something vital and needed in the community through the dental field. After discussions with Nancy Neish, director of the School of Dental Hygiene, she hopes to volunteer her time and skill with cancer patients as well as seniors in long-term care facilities.
MacDonald already has employment arranged at Southgate Dentistry in Bedford commencing this summer. The owner of the clinic comes from a family of dental professionals. She has built her business as a family-oriented practice, which suits MacDonald perfectly, giving her the opportunity to work with people of all ages.
鈥淚 want to make people feel comfortable and not guilty about their oral hygiene. I like to teach and encourage good habits rather than judge bad ones,鈥� she says.