For your security, you must create an account and be logged in to access the WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE database.

For instructions on how to use the database, click on the “Instructions For Getting Started On The Database” tab on the left-hand side menu.

Add Your Name To The Database   Find A Speaker

For your security, before access to the database is “unlocked” you need to create (and be logged into) an account. 

1. To create an account please click “Log In” on the top right-hand side of this webpage. Proceed by clicking on “Create Account” underneath username and password credentials. 

2. Fill out the registration form and submit your information. Remember, you MUST activate your account using your email in order to proceed. 

3. After your account is created, activated, and you are logged in navigate back to the WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE page. 

Creating an account DOES NOT add your name to the database, it is a prerequisite to interacting with the database.

4. Now that you are logged into your account, you can access the database! Explore the tab “Find A Speaker” to search through OMS speakers. If you find a speaker about whom you would like to learn more you can read through their profile and contact them directly.

5. Go to “Add Your Name To The Database” to submit your information and be entered into the system as a speaker. Once the form is completed and submitted there will be a review period before your entry is added to the database. Once initially submitted, you will be able to edit your profile after it has been approved. 

Submitting your information or searching for a speaker does not require a registration fee nor any additional membership.

     When Dr. Suzanne McCormick was planning a large OMS conference in 2020, she ran into a difficult situation that will not be novel to any OMS meeting planner: the female speaker confirmed for an anesthesia talk had an unavoidable conflict and could no longer attend the meeting. Even worse, Dr. McCormick and her planning committee did not have a female replacement. Thus, the already limited number of female speakers at this meeting would be even further diminished. 

     Not one to stand idly by and let circumstance determine fate, Dr. McCormick sent an email to a list of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons to see if there were any women interested in speaking at this meeting on anesthesia…and got a whopping 40 responses from women who had previously not identified a desire to speak at events. Of course this was eye opening–it was not surprising that this talent existed, but the fact that there was so much interest in contributing as speakers revealed an untapped resource for the OMS specialty.

     Thus, the idea was born for a database whereby female Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons could provide professional information and expertise, to be used by OMS meeting planners when developing meeting programs. Of course, this database would not discriminate and so is offered to surgeons regardless of gender, but with the intention of increasing the number of female speakers at OMS events.

“Serendipity is the chance occurrence that falls on the prepared mind”  -Dr. Paul Tessier

The mission of the WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE is for women to be seen and have a voice by increasing the number of female speakers participating at Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery meetings, conferences, and events.

The vision of the WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE is to provide an opportunity for female Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons to share their credentials as speakers and develop speaking and mentoring opportunities through networking and training opportunities.

We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all speakers. While this initiative is intended to increase the number of female OMS speakers, the database and related programs are not limited by gender.

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Suzanne McCormick, MS, DDS

Carolyn Brooks, DMD, MD

Andrea Boidman

Debra Sacco, DMD, MD*

View Bio

Sabine Girod, DDS, MD, PhD*

View Bio

Gabriele A. Millesi M.D., D.M.D.*

*Special Advisors

The WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE does not take responsibility for assigning level of speakers; with CV and video, the meeting organizer can determine if the speaker is a good fit for the event.

Coming Soon