• The European and North American Awards of Distinction are now open for entries

• The winners of the Awards of Distinction will be announced in July 2024

Sunstar Oral Health, part of Sunstar, has announced a new edition of the Regional Awards of Distinction for Dental Hygienists to recognise the work and accomplishments of dental hygienists across Europe and North America who have made a significant contribution to the dental hygiene field.

The two regional Awards of Distinction are now open for entries from qualified dental hygienists until March 31, 2024 for the North American Award, and April 15, 2024 for the European Award. Created in partnership with the European Dental Hygienist Federation (EDHF) in Europe, RDH Magazine for North America and supported by the Sunstar Foundation, the separate European and North American Awards of Distinction celebrate the achievements of dental hygienists in their different regions.

Hygienists looking to enter either the European or North American Awards of Distinction can either nominate themselves or a colleague, as long as they, or the person they are nominating, are officially registered dental hygienists. Both awards are split into six categories from which the nominee can choose from: Public Health, Full Time Clinician, Academia, Entrepreneur, New RDH and Research.

Both the European and the North American Awards of Distinction act as qualifying rounds for the World Dental Hygienists Award. First established in 2007, the World Dental Hygienists Award was re-introduced last year following a three-year hiatus during the COVID pandemic. The 2024 WDHA winners will be announced in July during the International Symposium of Dental Hygiene celebrated in Seoul, and the new edition will begin in January 2025.

Gitana Rederiene, president of the European Dental Hygienist Federation, comments on the new edition of the European Award of Distinction announcement: “We have been very impressed by the standard of nominations received for the 2023 awards European Award of Distinction, and the EDHF is delighted to continue our involvement in the 2024 edition together with Sunstar.”

Comments Jackie Sanders, RDH, MBA, Chief Editor of RDH Magazine: “We have seen how the Sunstar/RDH Award of Distinction has become the annual celebration of dental hygienists, and we are extremely proud to have built this along with Sunstar over the years.”

Adds Mayumi Kaneda, Director of the Sunstar Foundation: “Our commitment to celebrating dental hygienists is now stronger than ever with not just one, but three awards dedicated to acknowledging their successes and achievements globally.”

All nominations across the six categories of both the European and North American Awards of Distinction will be judged by independent selection committees. Each winner will automatically qualify for the World Dental Hygienists Award (WDHA), and have the opportunity to win the global award and travel to Milan, where the International Symposium on Dental Hygiene (ISDH) and the World Dental Hygienist Award ceremony will be held in 2026.

Dental hygienists can find more information along with details of the prizes on the following links European Award of Distinction, the North American Award of Distinction, and the World Dental Hygienist Awards.