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Registrationnow open

Feb 27, 2025, 5:00 PM – Mar 02, 2025, 12:00 PM
Embassy Suites ,
1001 E McCarty Ln, San Marcos, TX 78666, USA
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Don't Miss the Texas Dental Hygienists' Association "Fearless Era"!

The 2025 TDHA Annual Conference: A Premier Event for Dental Hygienists

The Texas Dental Hygienists' Association (TDHA) is thrilled to announce its 2025 Annual Conference, scheduled from February 27 to March 2, 2025, at the San Marcos Embassy Suites and Conference Center. This year’s theme, “Fearless Era,” promises an empowering event filled with professional growth, networking, and celebration for dental hygienists, educators, and students.

 

Key Dates and Registration

Early Bird registration opens on October 1, 2024 and runs until December 31, 2024. 

Available Rooms - Embassy Suites by Hilton San Marcos Hotel Conference Center

 

Conference Highlights

The conference kicks off Thursday evening with a welcome reception hosted by TDHA President Shawna Greer. Students will enjoy their own welcome party and peer networking, followed by a fun night of dancing.

On Friday morning, Dr. Uche Odiatu will deliver a powerful keynote, “Transform Your Body—Transform Your Life,” and continue with an in-depth, 3-hour CE session, “The Secret Lives of Your Patients: Lifestyle Habits that Influence Healing,” that afternoon. Dr. Odiatu will also present a motivational 1-hour CE session on Saturday morning.

Continuing Education and Events

Attendees can earn a total of 8 Continuing Education (CE) hours, including:

  • 5 hours from Dr. Odiatu’s sessions

  • 2 hours from Student Poster Presentations

  • 1 hour from Product Presentations

Other conference highlights include:

  • Legislative updates from TDHA Lobbyist Denise Rose

  • Student events, such as the TDHA Delegate Election and a Student Lip Sync Battle

  • Educational Methodology course for educators led by Dani Botbyl, covering “Ultrasonics in Dental Hygiene Education”

  • The Marketplace, featuring vendors, new products, and souvenirs

  • Special gatherings like the Educator Dinner sponsored by Q-Optics, the Hypac Dinner & Auction, and the President’s Party-Lavender Haze

 

Saturday and Beyond

Saturday’s schedule is packed with essential events, including:

  • The 2nd House of Delegates

  • Student panel discussions and the DHET Meeting

  • Awards Luncheon

  • Reference Committee Hearings

  • Candidates’ Corner and election of new officers

The conference wraps up on Sunday with the final House of Delegates meeting and the installation of Pamela Randolph as the 2025-2026 TDHA President.

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About Dr. Uche Odiatu

Dr Uche Odiatu DMD is a professional member of the American College of Sports Medicine and

a practicing dentist in Toronto. This busy health care professional is an NSCA Certified Personal

Trainer, Certified Yoga Instructor, Certified Boot Camp Instructor and has given 700 plus

lectures in England, Canada, the USA, the Bahamas, Denmark, Bermuda and Norway. Has

been theinvited guests in over 400 radio and TV shows from Alaska to Atlanta and from NYC to

California. He won a 2023 Lifetime Achievement award from The Global Dental Summit; 2023

Dental speaker of the year from the state of New Orleans and a Denobi Award 2023 for his

contribution to the industry. He was nominated for dental educator of the year by Dr Bicuspid.

You can visit him Twitter and Instagram @fitspeakers www.DrUche.com

 

Friday AM Session

Transform your Body, Transform your life

An invigorating presentation designed to give health care professional strategies on how they

can eat mindfully, exercise regularly develop a fitness modus operandi. The research shows

that physically active professionals and CEO’s have stronger resilience, faster reaction time,

more energy and sharper cognitive ability than their inactive counterparts. Most health care

professionals are surprised to uncover the robust science between their personal health and

their professional performance. Finally, a different kind of program to help health care

professionals perform better in & out of the office in 2024 and beyond.

1. Learn how your health & vitality impacts your work life balance

2. Develop a nutrition and fitness mindset 24/7 & enjoy the benefits at work and at home

3. Discover how other business and world leaders have become empowered & act Today

NOT Tomorrow

4. Gain insight into the new science of the human microbiome

 

Friday PM Session

Secret lives of your patients: Lifestyle habits that influence healing

Our patients don’t leave their stressful jobs, poor sleeping patterns (insomnia, apnea, snoring),

their physical fitness (or lack) or their eating patterns (mindless eating & evening feeding

frenzies) in the car before they sit in our chair. There’s irrefutable scientific evidence that these

habits can ramp up inflammation or dial it down. Well adjusted, rested, physically active, healthy

eating patients enjoy a physiology that supports a better response to our prevention/restorative

interventions. In this high energy entertaining program, be prepared to have your hair blown

back

Objectives:

1. Discover how eating habits can dial down or ramp inflammation and how it affects your

treatment outcomes

2. Learn why it’s important to identify the sleep deprived patient (not just apnea) right away at

the New Patient exam

3. Understand why your sedentary patients don’t heal as well as your active living patients.

ALERT 85% of your patients lead sedentary lives.

4. Gain greater insight into the relationship between chronic inflammation & disease and

become a leader in your

 

Saturday AM Session 

Exercise session - Uche’s ZenBody30: energize & revitalize

Lifelong athlete, practicing dentist and NSCA Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Yoga

Instructor, Certified Boot Camp instructor will guide you through a 30–60-minute gentle series of

exercises to tone and move your 600 muscles and 206 bones. Beginners to intermediate

exercisers will enjoy the opportunity to experience a unique way to wake up their muscles and

energize the spirit. (Business Casual attire is fine)

1. Receive the components of a time efficient complete exercise program for the busiest dental

professional

2. Discover the value of adding a flexibility and balance component to your workouts

3. Gain insight into the influence of a meditative period in your day to support the mind-body

connection

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About Dani Botbyl, RDH

Dani Botbyl is an educator, author, and researcher and has been a trailblazer for the

advancement of ultrasonic technology in dental hygiene practice and education in North

America. She is credited with leading the first team of researchers to investigate the topic of

ultrasonic instrumentation education in dental hygiene programs. The culmination of her

knowledge and research has produced multiple publications in industry and peer-reviewed

journals and textbooks. In 2018, with her co-authors, Dani was awarded the Canadian Journal

of Dental Hygiene Research Award for Best Original Research Paper. Dani co-authored the

second edition of Ultrasonic Periodontal Debridement: Theory and Technique (2024) and is a

contributing author to the sixth edition of Darby and Walsh Dental Hygiene Theory and Practice

(2024). Dani has presented hundreds of evidence-based programs to dental hygiene students,

faculty and practicing clinicians nationally and internationally, served as the National Clinical

Educator with Dentsply Sirona 2000-2023 and held a faculty position at Niagara College of

Applied Arts and Technology in Welland, Ontario Canada for over a decade. Dani’s passion for

enhancing the practice of dental hygiene create learning experiences that are not to be missed!

 

Dani Botbyl is an educator, author, and award-winning researcher and who been a trailblazer

for the advancement of ultrasonic technology in dental hygiene practice and education in North

America and abroad. The culmination of her knowledge and research has produced multiple

publications in industry and peer-reviewed journals and textbooks. Dani has presented

hundreds of courses to students, faculty and practicing clinicians nationally and internationally.

Her passion for enhancing the expertise of dental hygienists creates learning experiences that

are not to be missed!

You can visit her @dani.ultrasoniccoach and dani.botbyl@outlook.com

DHET Methodology 

Effective Strategies for Teaching Ultrasonic Debridement in Dental Hygiene Programs

This course explores the evolution of ultrasonic instrumentation from an educator’s perspective.

Participants will learn to optimize student outcomes by analyzing instrument characteristics and effective assessment rubrics. Additionally, this session identifies common student challenges and provides solutions to enhance clinical understanding and performance in ultrasonic instrumentation.

1. Examine the evolution of traditional and contemporary ultrasonic instrumentation research from an educator’s perspective to optimize student learning outcomes.

2. Analyze various ultrasonic instrument designs and discuss how students can best perceive the clinical significance of length, diameter, shape, profile, and cross section.

3. Define key elements of an ultrasonic assessment/evaluation rubric and identify common student

deficiencies with solutions to address these deficiencies.

 

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