The oral pathologist has been imparting wisdom at the Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry for more than 40 years. He’s done the math, and he figures he’s seen more than 3,000 dental students, dental hygiene learners and residents earn their degrees and diplomas.

“I’ve gained great satisfaction in being part of their educational journeys and knowing that they’re excellent clinicians,” says Perry, associate professor of dental diagnostic and surgical sciences and former associate dean (academic). 

Perry, who grew up in Winnipeg’s North End and Garden City neighbourhoods, graduated from the UM dental school himself in 1976.

He went on to study at Emory University in Atlanta. There he earned a 1982 certificate in oral pathology, the dental specialty focused on the diagnosis and treatment of oral diseases, including cancer.

“I became fascinated with the problem-solving aspect of diagnosing oral diseases,” he says. “I enjoy the challenge of putting together the diagnostic puzzle.”

Returning to Manitoba, Perry became a part-time assistant professor at the dental school while completing a master of science in immunology. He joined the dentistry faculty full time in 1986, maintaining a part-time practice.

For the safety of every patient, Perry says, it’s essential that dental students learn to diagnose oral diseases.

“When I was a student, the teaching of oral pathology was from books with black-and-white images. Now websites provide videos of diagnostic procedures and high-tech images and animations. It’s much more engaging.”

Over the past two decades, Perry says, dental students have made him aware of the competing demands that they must balance in their lives outside of school, such as financial, family and mental health challenges.

“As a result, I have tried to be more understanding and empathetic in my teaching style, and when dealing with student issues as the academic dean.”

In the mid-1990s, Perry, a classically trained pianist, formed a trio with a flautist and violinist who were dental students. They performed at dentistry functions, graduations and weddings.

“Those students impressed upon me the importance of maintaining interests outside the intensity of the dental college. This is something I now encourage in all my students.”

As a researcher, Perry collaborated with two other Canadian professors on an in-depth 2014 study of admissions processes at Canada’s 10 dental schools.

One of their findings was a considerable debate among dental faculty about a manual dexterity test that required applicants to make a soap carving.

“Some saw the carving test as a valid assessment tool. Others argued that the dexterity needed for dentistry can be taught in the program, and that soap-carving aptitude doesn’t predict dental skills.

“We recommended more evaluation of this test, which is currently not being used. As a result of our overall report, there’s a national working group that continues to financially support research on all selection tools and processes.”

As Perry approaches retirement at the end of 2025, he says he will miss seeing his students grow from hopeful dental school applicants into confident professionals.

“They become my colleagues,” he says. “I’ve been privileged to be part of that evolution.”

Fifteen members of the college’s Student Environmental Group and volunteers picked up about four garbage bags worth of trash earlier this month that was laying on and around campus grounds.

“It was the first time the dental college has done something like this,” said Aarushi Dhawan, a fourth-year dental student and a member of the Student Environmental Group. “It was a success.”

Dr. John Perry, associate dean (academic), Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, joined the students for the campus cleanup.

“The initiative is an indication of the students’ appreciation of being part of the neighbourhood and wanting to give back to the community,” Perry said. “It was a privilege to help the Student Environmental Group in performing the cleanup by providing the materials to safely conduct the activity. Kudos to them for organizing a successful event.”

The Student Environment Group, comprising dentistry and dental hygiene students, was created in 2020 to look at ways to decrease the amount of waste in the college.

Aarushi Dhawan and JR Salinas stand next to one of the glove recycling boxes.

“In dentistry there is a lot of one-time use material,” said JR Salinas, a fourth-year dental student and member of the Student Environmental Group. “It would be great to recycle and reuse some of the things we use in the college to lessen the carbon footprint that dentistry has.”

Since the group was established, the green-minded students created a glove recycling program. They have glove recycling bins located in the pre-clinic and senior labs.

The group is looking into setting up a recycling program for masks and want to use reusable bib chains that can be disinfected. They also want to bring composting to the college.

“I think as future health-care providers we do have an obligation to better the community and environment around us,” Dhawan said. “We are doing that by treating patients, but I think it can extend beyond that and extend to making more environmentally conscious choices, both as a college, and in our personal lives. I’m hoping the Student Environmental Group can promote awareness about what it means to be environmentally conscious.”

In May, the University of Manitoba announced the fall term would be primarily offered remotely, except where necessary, leading programs to find creative ways for their students to begin their university careers.

Some activities that received an exception to be held onsite, such as the Max Rady College of Medicine’s annual white coat ceremony, were done so with social distancing measures in place to ensure safety.

“Even though we all had to be socially distant from each other during the ceremony, the act of putting on our white coat and reciting the physician’s pledge made me feel more connected to my classmates and excited for what medical school has in store for us,” said first-year medical student Mariel Talabis.

First-year student Mariel Talabis said the socially distant white coat ceremony still made her feel excited for medical school.

Online orientation

Orientation activities for all the colleges, including presentations from Ongomiizwin – Education and Student Services at Bannatyne Campus (SS@BC) had to be held online.

“In-person orientation activities have been decreased, and accessible to only six or seven students at a time,” said Dr. John Perry, associate dean (academic), Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry. Immunizations, fitting of magnification loupes and an abbreviated tour of the Bannatyne Campus were done in person, he said.

Perry said about half of classes for the fall term will be held online for the college and School of Dental Hygiene. “Online teaching, although a new experience for most educators and students, has been accepted with supports both internal and external to the college,” he said.

At the College of Rehabilitation Sciences, new students in its three core programs – occupational therapy, physical therapy and respiratory therapy – met each other in a group session via video conferencing on Sept. 9. Prior to that, they had orientation virtual sessions in each of their programs.

First-year occupational therapy (OT) students had two days of virtual sessions that included meeting their second-year “siblings” who were able to answer any questions about the program or campus.

“That’s something we do every year, except that it had to be done virtually this time,” said Leanne Leclair, OT department head. “We also had to get creative to find ways over Zoom for the students to get to know each other. They’ll still be working closely together.”

There was also an “entrance to the profession” ceremony that students were able to invite their families to view. Prerecorded tours of the Bannatyne campus were done virtually and will be revisited before students come to the campus for the first time in October.

First-year College of Pharmacy students had a one-day virtual orientation prior to online classes where they got to meet faculty and second-year students, who were able to answer any questions.

“We also had the College of Pharmacists of Manitoba provide valuable information to the new and eager first-year PharmD students,” said Cheryl Lee, student advisor and program coordinator.

The PharmD students will be on campus for their first in-person lab at the end of September, although the lab will take place over two days to accommodate smaller groups.

Skills blitz

NSA Senior stick Kelsey Tonn speaks to a first-year student at the College of Nursing’s skills blitz orientation.

At the College of Nursing, new students began their asynchronous virtual orientation in August but needed to put on masks to attend the annual “skills blitz” in person over two days in early September. 

“This format allowed for greater flexibility as the students were provided three weeks to work through the orientation and had the opportunity to go back and review materials as needed. We also had some small quizzes set up to ensure the students understood the material,” said Trina Arnold, director of undergraduate nursing programs.

The skills blitz is an opportunity for the 120 new bachelor of nursing students to gain some hands-on experience in the skills labs at the Helen Glass Centre for Nursing. The students were divided into groups, taking part in one of four sessions, where they were introduced to important skills like hand hygiene and taking vital signs. Student mentors were on hand to offer instruction and answer questions.

Sessions were held in two rooms rather than one this year to ensure smaller groups. Following UM guidelines, all students, faculty and staff had to wear personal protective equipment (PPE), as social distancing was not possible in the hands-on sessions. 

Kelsey Tonn, a fourth-year bachelor of nursing student and senior stick of the Nursing Students’ Association, said the new students were grateful to have an opportunity to meet each other in person, as peer support will be important as they go through the program.

“The students were a bit nervous, but not any more than they were the last couple of years I helped with the skills blitz,” she said. 

The Student Environmental Group was created earlier this year to look at ways to decrease the amount of waste in the college. They’re focused on what is being thrown away in the clinic, pre-clinic and in the college as a whole.

Madison Flamand, a fourth-year dentistry student, said a lot of paper, plastics and gloves are thrown out in the clinic, which sees about 130 patients each day. However, they face many challenges when it comes to making the clinic more environmentally friendly.

“We have to follow provincial and national guidelines on things like infection prevention and control,” said Flamand, who is co-leading the group with third-year dentistry student Derek Oryniak. “It is challenging because we have to find a way to reduce carbon emissions and our carbon footprint while still following guidelines for the safety of our patients.”

But there are things they can do, Flamand said, adding that the group is looking at reusable bib chains that can be disinfected.

In the pre-clinic, where first- and second-year dentistry students are learning and aren’t yet seeing patients, Flamand said the group is looking at the amount of paper and plastic being used. She said the students need to find a way to build excellent habits, but without creating as much waste.

The group is also working to bring composting to the college. “As a college we can reduce our carbon emissions a lot, which will make a huge difference on the environment,” Flamand said.

The idea for the environmental group came out of a student/faculty advisory committee meeting because they saw they could make greener choices. Students from each dentistry and dental hygiene class volunteered, and the group is made up of 12 learners.

“Some students are working predominantly in clinic while others are in pre-clinic,” Oryniak said. “The challenges are different so we thought it would be important to make sure that everyone brings their own perspective and can address all the needs of the college.”

Dr. John Perry, associate dean, academic, Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, said the group is a student-driven initiative and they’ve taken it upon themselves to do their part in helping protect the environment.

“The college is supportive of the students’ actions in working toward a more sustainable future,” Perry said. “They are setting an example from which we all benefit.”

Oryniak said they wanted to start off with ambitious, but realistic, goals. By the end of the year, they aim to have a concrete plan to take to the college advisory committee so they can begin working towards accomplishing their mission of reducing the college’s carbon footprint.

“As students, this is something we can take leadership on,” Oryniak said. “We’re seeing that already, so students should be encouraged if they have ideas like this to push forward and work with faculty to enact change.”