WOMEN”S DENTAL COUNCIL
About US
Women’s Dental Council
Women’s Dental Council an initiative of the Indian Dental Association, established with an aim to connect and ameliorate the lives of women dentists in the country.
It has been 90 years since the first women dental association was established in the United States and subsequently established in other countries also. The Indian Women in dentistry have always had the desire to have a forum where they could address issues related to women. The Head Office Committee of the Indian Dental Association fulfilled our dream of forming the Women’s Dental Council of under their aegis.
The Women’s Dental Council was christened on 14th February at the annual IDA Conference held at Nagpur in the year 2008. WDC was formed under the chairmanship of Dr.Sabita Ram.
The women’s wing would be the sole platform under the aegis of Indian Dental Association which would believe in a Mission of growing & making a mark in society of being a source of support & inspiration not only to women dentists but to all women & children at large in society.
Mission
Growing & making a mark in society of being a source of support & inspiration not only to women dentists but to all women & children at large in society. We have a mission to take up programme & projects to bring out leadership qualities & prepare women to face challenges in future related to their careers. Women dentist are not only dentists but mothers also. They can address issues dealing with the oral health of women & children in the Indian population.
Vision
Attain excellence for women & provide greater representation in the dental forum. Discuss issues affecting women & provide ways for career advancement.
Core Values
  • To highlight the various barriers being faced by women in leadership positions in academic dentistry in India and global concern for unbiased advancement of women.
  • The development of the careers of women with tremendous potential.
  • Focus on oral health issue of every woman in the country.

This is just the beginning of a New Revolution …………..Come Join Hands & Be A Part!
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History
Women in Dentistry History
In the eighteenth and early nineteenth century dental schools throughout the world did not accept any female students. It was only in 1866, the Ohio College of Dental Surgery in Cincinnati became the first dental school in the United States to grant a degree to a woman. Lucy Beaman Hobbs Taylor (1833 - 1920) earned it after only four months of study, because she already had years of experience as a practicing dentist. People in those days didn’t expect women to have a career outside the home.
Indian Women Dentists
Indian Women have always been considered a step behind their male counterparts. India has a comparatively low female to male ratio in the general population as compared to the Western countries. The percentage of women in the Indian population who are engaged in some kind of work is low.
But nevertheless, women are making inroads in the field of dentistry too. The status of Indian women at large has been subjected to great changes in the past few decades. The expansion of the number of women in dentistry has been one of the major trends seen in the last two decades of the past century and will continue in this century also. This is reflected in the greater number of female than male applicants to dental schools. Since 1999 there has been an increase in the female students, more so in 2000, and this trend is continuing today.
Indian women have come up a long way since Independence. Gone are the days when the leadership positions in dentistry were predominantly occupied by male dentists. The staff in dental schools, the research laboratories in India today has prominent faces as females, who have quietly begun challenging the conventional male ideas that had shaped the policies earlier on.
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Structure
Structure of Women Dental Council
  • Chairperson - Dr. Sabita Ram
  • Vice – Chairpersons- Dr. Meera Verma, Dr. Sandhya Jain, Dr. Usha Mohandas & Dr. Supriya Nerli.
  • The Hon. Secretary for the women’s council is Dr. Bhakti Agaskar.
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Activities
Activities under the WDC Banner
The first programme to be held under the WDC umbrella was held on the 5th of July,2009 organized by the Indore branch of IDA under the leadership of native, Dr.Sandhya Jain.
Renowned Chartered Accountant Mrs. Pratibha Chourasia was the chief guest, who enlightened the participants on ‘Women’s Rights’.
She also elaborated on Human Right Act 1993 and informed the female dentists regarding the grant of 3 months maternity leave for females and in an institution where more than 10 females are working special provision has to be provided for child care at their work place. She further motivated the women fraternity to be continually aware of their rights and take time out for themselves.
The programme was also graced by presence of Dr. Supriya Nerli and Dr.Rajni Gupta.
The 2nd program of women’s dental council was organized on 1st August 2009, lecture on “Banking Awareness” by Mrs. Manjari Jain, Manager, ICICI bank at Government College of Dentistry, Indore. Dr. Sandhya Jain was the convener of the program.
She briefed the participants on issues like general banking, easy tips to protect from possible cheque frauds, how to use Internet banking, important information on ATM cards, credit cards, home, personal, vehicle and study loans.
The 3rd Program was an Inter-college Scientific Paper presentation for BDS girl students in collaboration with Government College of Dentistry, Indore was held on 23rd August 2009. Two entries were selected from each of the four dental colleges of Indore. This program gave a boost to the confidence of the girls and a platform for them to put forth their views.
“Role of Women Dentist in Tobacco Control” by Dr. Sandhya Jain, vice president of WDC, was organized in Indore. She stressed on the fact that women are better counselors and better managers than men and can handle leadership activities like Tobacco control efficiently.
A survey was also conducted in Madhya Pradesh by WDC. Its findings established that Indore leads in the number of female dentists in the State. According to statistics number of females in private dental colleges in the State is as high as 60 percent. In the survey WDC has concluded that in 2008 the total number of dentists in the state was 487 and included 138 females giving a total percentage of females at 28.33%.The same statistics for Indore in 2008 was total 111 dentists including 38 female giving 34.23%.
Another program conducted was by Dr. Usha Mohandas on the “ROLE OF WOMEN DENTIST IN IDA”
12th September “World Oral Health Day” witnessed the launch of the Women’s Dental Council and Tobacco Intervention Initiative, in Northern India. The event was organized by Dr.Meera Verma at Russian Cultural Centre, Delhi.
The chief guest at this function was the dynamic, world renowned lady police officer Dr.Kiran Bedi. Dr.Ashok Dhoble, Hon Sec.Gen of IDA; Dr.Sabita Ram, Chairperson of WDC, Dr.Sandeep Sharma, Preisdent IDA Delhi state and Dr.Bhakti Agaskar Hon.Sec.WDC were the guest of Honours.
Dr.Sabita Ram gave the inaugural address in which she emphasized the need for greater representation of women in Dental Forums and to accentuate efforts to maximize working opportunities for women dentists and understand issues affecting them.
Post introduction by Dr.Meera Verma, Dr.Kiran Bedi endorsed the need for women to play a more active role in decision making in dental bodies and the necessity to put to use their academic qualifications in addition to being a home maker, in her speech. She was very emphatic that women dentists must effectively use their skills to benefit society and the nation at large.
Dr.Ashok Dhoble introduced the concept of Tobacco Intervention Initiative and TII Centres. The Tii Centres aim for “Tobacco Free India” by helping patients quit smoking and consumption of smokeless or chewing tobacco, by counseling, pharmacological means or combination of both. The first three TII kits were handed over to Dr. Mahesh Verma of Moulana Azad Institute of Dental Sciences, Dr.Janak Sabherwal of Harsharan Das Dental Colle and Dr. Sandeep Sharma, President Delhi State for establishing the first TII centres in the region.
The programme was attended by Over 2000 dentists thus speaking the success of it.
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