Posted by Dr. Evan Shaw is one of the five pediatric dentists (along with two residents and nine assistants/staff) at IWK Health that provide dental care to children and adolescents with and without special healthcare needs in both a clinic and operating room setting.
After spending time working in private practice in the United States, Shaw was drawn to the IWK for several reasons, the most important of which was the opportunity to treat medically complex patients.
“A key piece of the specialty of pediatric dentistry is the management of patients with special healthcare needs and the hospital setting allows me to provide treatment to a wide range of both healthy and medically complex patients,” says Shaw. “Even after many years of practice, I still find it incredibly satisfying when I am able to address/overcome their barriers to care and provide treatment that their parents may not have thought possible.”
Shaw also values the relationships he has made with other care providers and staff across the IWK.
“I’m continually impressed by the willingness of other departments within the health centre to collaborate on patient care to provide the highest quality, safest treatment possible,” says Shaw.
As director of the Dalhousie Faculty of Dentistry/IWK Pediatric General Practice Residency Program Shaw is ensuring that the next generation of general and pediatric dentists upholds that quality of care. This year the Association of Canadian Faculties of Dentistry recognized Shaw’s commitment to the residents and students he supervises with the W.W. Wood Award for Excellence in Dental Education.
“I’m hopeful that increasing awareness of access to care issues related to children and patients with special healthcare needs in the Maritimes and across Canada will inspire others to work together to address these barriers to care,” says Shaw.