WesternU College of Dental Medicine Research Day: Shaping the future of patient care

Western University of Health Sciences’ College of Dental Medicine held its fourth annual CDM Research Day April 20, 2026, featuring student research posters, an American Student Dental Association (ASDA) Vendor Fair, and a keynote address by USC Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry Dean Yang Chai, DDS, PhD.

“Research and evidence‑based decision‑making are essential to oral health care practice. Our students showcased outstanding scholarship through the posters they presented in collaboration with their faculty mentors,” said CDM Dean Elizabeth Andrews, DDS, MS. “The event culminated with an inspiring keynote by Dean Yang Chai, who highlighted his impactful research advancing care for patients with craniofacial disorder, providing a powerful example for our students of how they can shape the future of patient care.”  

The event featured 27 digital and printed posters authored by 89 students and 27 faculty. The entire DMD Class of 2028 presented eight posters as part of their DMD6180 Introduction to Evidence-Based Dental Research course.  

CDM’s 2025-26 ADEA Academic Dental Careers Fellowship Program (ADCFP) scholars also participated, as well as several students who presented their original research at the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) meeting and other local and regional meetings earlier this year.  

Second-year CDM student Clay Clifton presented the poster “Silver Nanoparticles in Periodontal Treatments” with his classmates as part of the Introduction to Evidence-Based Dental Research course.  

“It’s a great program. As someone who had never done research, having a class dedicated to it helps ease you in,” Clifton said. “It really helped me become very knowledgeable in these topics, and it brought us closer together as classmates.  

“I think it’s really important to learn more about the future of our field,” he added. “We always need to progress it. If we only rely on previous research, we are never going to learn anything new.”  

CDM student Jaipal Kaur Sandhu, who joined the DMD Class of 2026 via the International Dentist Program, said she wanted to conduct research because you always want to learn more.  

“You can’t read everything, and sometimes you can read something and forget about it,” she said. “When you come to events like this, it freshens up your memory and you can applaud the hard work of the people who did the research.”  

Second-year CDM student Diamond Bennett said faculty did a good job in providing guidance to students throughout the research process.  

“It was a fun experience, and now we get to see it all come together on Research Day,” Bennett said. “There are so many advances happening in the dental field. This is a great way to know what’s going on and to be part of the solution.”