Hello everyone. Happy December and Season’s Greetings!

As 2024 draws to a close, I want to take a moment to celebrate the extraordinary success of the College’s Peer Circles project, with particular attention to the fact that the success of this endeavour was, in a large part, due to the participation of so many RDHs! Over 1,000 RDHs participated, either in-person or online, across 28 optional sessions offered throughout 2024, and of the 800+ RDHs who volunteered for assessment in 2025, over 600 have selected Path 4 (Peer Circles) as their preferred approach. The response has been incredible, and far exceeded our expectations! Thank you to everyone who came out to the optional sessions and volunteered for assessment.

I also want to strongly acknowledge the contributions of the RDHs who participated in the development and delivery of this experience: The facilitators (85), case writers (23) and case reviewers (16). This was an amazing collaborative effort and commitment to a new approach to continuous learning and professional growth! Finally, the delivery of this program would not have been possible without the support of an incredible team of CDHO staff.  Thanks and congratulations all around!

I’m also excited to report that Council is developing a strategic plan that will guide CDHO’s work over the next three years. This was one of the recommendations coming out of the governance review that we released earlier this year. The plan will help build on our successes and provide a road map as we continue refining our approach to right-touch, collaborative regulation to better protect the public interest. We’ll keep you updated on this work.

There is also much to celebrate with the continued rollout of the Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP). According to Statistics Canada, over 400,000 Ontarians have received care thanks to the CDCP. RDHs are an invaluable, essential part of the oral healthcare team, and we’re thrilled to see participation by oral health providers increasing. This is an important milestone in expanding access to oral healthcare, and we continue to acknowledge and encourage the participation of RDHs.

I remain honoured to be working with such a dedicated group of professionals who support the ongoing oral and general health of the people of Ontario. Wishing everyone a joyful and restful holiday season, and my very best wishes for 2025!

Dr. Glenn Pettifer
Registrar/CEO