Much respected former Chief Executive and Secretary of the BDA, John Hunt has been nominated by the BDA to run as President of the FDI World Dental Federation.

John has a long and distinguished record of achievement and experience in International, European and UK dentistry. He is the current Speaker of the FDI World Dental Federation's General Assembly and in that role, and as an FDI Council Member, he has gained the respect of colleagues for his work on behalf of the FDI.

Dentistry must be in his genes for he followed his father, grandfather and great-grandfather into the profession. He has worked in general dental practice; hospital dentistry; dental public health and in dental management in the UK, USA and Hong Kong. During his time as the BDA Chief Executive in the 1990s, membership increased and further services for members were developed. While he was at the helm the BDA undertook a governance review and was accredited as a UK 'Investor in People', demonstrating his dedication to quality management and training.

Currently John is the European Vice-President of the Commonwealth Dental Association (CDA); an International Board Member of OSAP (Organisation for Safety and Asepsis Procedures) in the USA; the Chairman of the Advisory Panel of DENTAID (a UK based charity); a member of the General Dental Council's Appointments Committee and a director of Smile-on Ltd, a company producing e-learning for healthcare professionals. For many years he was an active participant in the European Regional Organisation of the FDI and a delegate and treasurer of the European Dental Liaison Committee.

International knowledge and experience

John is a great believer in bringing together Associations for a common purpose. The joint meeting in Nairobi of the FDI, OSAP and the CDA in December 2003 is but one example. Recently he led the CDA's delegation to the Commonwealth Health Ministers meeting in Geneva held immediately before the annual World Health Assembly. At this meeting he was able to speak to Health Ministers and Senior Government officials from some of the 53 Commonwealth Countries. In a few months time he will be chairing a session during the People's Forum at the Commonwealth Heads of Government in Malta and he has chaired the FDI Affiliate Members meeting for the last five years.

The BDA deems that his knowledge, experience, authority and competence would be very well suited to the presidency of the FDI, since he has lectured, met national dental associations, visited dental schools and participated in meetings throughout the world. These visits and his work in many diverse countries, both developed and developing, have given him an extraordinarily wide knowledge and appreciation of global dentistry. The large number of contacts he has forged with fellow dentists and colleagues from the industry would also be a powerful tool in his role as President. In that role he would seek to raise the awareness and value of the FDI within the global non-governmental organisations concerned with healthcare; develop the FDI's role as an effective campaigning organisation and deliver the missions and aims set by the General Assembly.

Voting in Montreal in August

More recently, at home, he has become an adviser to a Primary Care Trust and a member of an External Advisory Group to the Peninsula Medical School. He is also an elected Parish Councillor in his home village in Devon.

For his work for the dental profession John Hunt was appointed OBE by Her Majesty the Queen in 2001. The Faculty of General Dental Practitioners (UK) elected him a Fellow and he has been awarded the Honorary Membership of the American Dental Association and the British Dental Association, this most recently at the Glasgow Conference in May.

The FDI's General Assembly will be voting for the post of President Elect at its meeting during the Annual World Congress in Montreal at the end of August. Many fellow professionals from the UK will be participating in the Congress (details of which have appeared recently in the BDJ and are fully available on www.fdiworldental.org). They and many from overseas will hope that the delegates push the right button on their voting machines to elect the worthy candidate from the UK.