As Pitt Dental Medicine works toward our mission of improving oral health through our teaching, research, and service, I am pleased to announce four new directors whose innovative work is aimed at harnessing the advantages of technology and efficiency.
Dr. Joelle Carlo has been appointed the Director of Online Education. In this new role, she will work within the Office of Academic Affairs to collaboratively develop and implement online education opportunities across all units and departments. She will serve as a liaison between Pitt Dental Medicine, the Health Sciences, and the University as we partner with industry and expand our educational reach. Dr. Carlo’s extensive interdisciplinary teaching portfolio as well as experience in implementing and evaluating interactive learning technologies that support online asynchronous education, will support her work as she drives this initiative forward
Dr. Robert Nerone has been appointed the Director of Chairside Digital Dentistry. This new role, working under the Offices of Academic and Clinical Affairs, will have a particular focus on creating efficiencies across all clinical areas of Pitt Dental Medicine through the integration of innovative digital tools and products. Dr. Nerone’s extensive experience in private practice where he deployed advanced digital technologies, alongside his research on acoustic technology partnered with residents and graduate students at Carnegie Mellon University, will allow him to share real-world experiences and application of these advanced technologies into traditional workflows.
Dr. Suvendra Vijayan has been appointed the Director of 3D Printing and Advanced Technologies. In this new role, working under the Offices of Academic and Clinical Affairs, he will focus on expanding the use of open platform and specialized 3D printing technologies across our institution. This initiative will be applied across pre-, and post-doctoral programs, as well as in our research platforms. Dr. Vijayan’s insight as a member of the American Dental Association’s Standards Committee on Dental Informatics, and his research focus on artificial intelligence, machine learning, 3D printing, and image segmentation with Pitt, CMU, and other universities will allow him to bring the most innovative technologies to Pitt Dental Medicine.
Dr. Pamela Tisot has been appointed the Director of Predoctoral Clinical Operations. This role within the Office of Clinical Affairs will focus on streamlining clinical workflows, optimizing chair utilization, and maximizing educational experiences for the predoctoral students. The objective is to standardize the predoctoral clinical experience throughout the various departments while minimizing barriers to student progression and facilitating continuity of patient care. Dr. Tisot’s experience in the comprehensive care forum will support her work with department chairs as they collectively identify pain points and implement pragmatic and efficient solutions around the topics of clinical faculty coverage, patient scheduling, student assistant support, and supply management.
Please join me in enthusiastically supporting these leaders as they shape a robust and innovative digital dentistry platform, cutting-edge, inclusive, and accessible online educational courses, and enhanced predoctoral clinical operations across Pitt Dental Medicine.
With collaborative spirit,
Marnie Oakley, DMD