ADHA Announces Recipient of 2003 Irene Newman Professional Achievement Award

Chicago-June 30, 2003-The American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA) has named Debby Kurtz-Weidinger, RDH, MEd, of Phoenix, Ariz., as the recipient of the 2003 ADHA Irene Newman Professional Achievement Award.

The award, sponsored by Oral-B Laboratories, recognizes a current ADHA member who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in advancing the art and science of dental hygiene. Irene E. Newman served as the first dental hygienist under Alfred C. Fones-credited with developing the term "dental hygiene" and pioneering the dental hygiene movement. Newman performed the first prophylaxis for the public in 1907.

Kurtz-Weidinger, an active member of ADHA since 1975, is currently faculty at Rio Salado College and the Phoenix College Dental Hygiene Program, and is a visiting faculty member at the University of Buffalo School of Dental Medicine. She is active with the American Association of Public Health Dentistry and the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors.

She was honored during the opening ceremonies at ADHA's 80th annual session in New York, N.Y., on June 28. She received $1,000 and a commemorative award, as well as round-trip transportation and lodging for the session.

ADHA is the largest national organization representing the professional interests of the more than 120,000 dental hygienists across the country. Dental hygienists are preventive oral health professionals, licensed in dental hygiene, who provide educational, clinical and therapeutic services that support total health through the promotion of optimal oral health. For more information about ADHA, dental hygiene or the link between oral health and general health, visit ADHA at http://www.adha.org.

Oral-B, a brand of the Gillette Company, is a leader in the oral health industry, marketing power toothbrushes for adults and children, as well as interdental products such as irrigators and oral care centers.

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