A Registered Dental Assistant (RDA) for 24 years, Susan vander Heide began her career in pediatric dentistry. She had a compassionate, patient-centred approach to oral health. After years of clinical practice, Susan became an educator, drawing on her experience to help prepare dental assisting students for joining the profession.
Her commitment to dental assisting and oral health extended beyond her employment roles. Susan participated in numerous volunteer dental missions to underprivileged countries where she assisted with providing oral health services and education to marginalized people.
Shortly after becoming an RDA, Susan began volunteering for a local dental assisting association. She also contributed her insight and enthusiasm to a broad range of committees within our College. These included legislative, nominations, bylaws review, continuing competence, dental health month, newsletter editorial and others. This path led to serving on Council, eventually as a thoughtful and pragmatic leader in the role of President.
Susan began working with our College when the Alberta Government, through the Health Professions Act, (HPA) required that all health professions have a continuing competence program (CCP) for their regulated members. Her clinical, educational and legislative experience was a perfect fit for leading the development and implementation of a competence program for dental assistants and our first CCP website. Throughout the project, she focused on empowering dental assistants to own their professional practice and to maintain and enhance their knowledge, skills and abilities throughout their careers.
In 2005, Susan was part of the group that organized the first National Continuing Competence Conference. She believed in opportunities for provincial and national collaboration, networking, and knowledge transfer on matters related to continuing competence programs.
Leading by example, she demonstrated her dedication to continuous learning throughout her career by earning academic credentials in adult education, human resources as well as management. She regularly participated in conferences and webinars to ensure she stayed informed about the current regulatory environment.
In addition to her work on the CCP, Susan has supported the ongoing growth and development of our College in many ways. For example, she was instrumental in supporting Council with their governance restructuring to better align with our College’s role under the HPA. Part of this work involved assisting with the development of robust bylaws and policies. Susan also led the work toward and implementation of our College’s first formal personnel policies and employee handbook. She understood the importance of setting clear expectations for employees and promoting a consistent and fair workplace.
Susan is truly a champion of continuous learning, collaboration and leading by example. We sincerely thank her for her contributions and commitment to the dental assisting profession and our College.
Congratulations on your retirement, Susan!