We are pleased to present the Third Annual Townie Choice Awards. This year we had more than 2,500 votes for the products, services and equipment that you use every day. Dental professionals are faced with purchasing decisions on a regular basis and the TCAs were created to improve that process. Instead of calling two or three colleagues to say, “What do you use for this or that?” you can simply look through the pages of this issue of Dentaltown Magazine to see the winners. The list of runners-up are available on our Web site Dentaltown.com; every vote was important as some categories were determined by just a few votes.

We have harnessed the brainpower of our community of more than 61,000 registered members from around the world in our 198-question ballot. This may be the most complete resource of consumer behavior in dentistry. More than a buyer’s guide, this is a profile of our community product loyalties. We have organized the ballot questions into 13 categories to make it easy to find the products you need.

This is the only award in dentistry that comes directly from the professionals who treat patients every day. One Townie, one vote has been our mantra since the beginning. The people have spoken, and we are here to present their results.

The dentists who participate on Dentaltown.com are a very important group in dentistry. By virtue of location, an online community finds professionals with technical knowledge to navigate the Web site, post messages and share clinical cases. Furthermore, the dentists who participate online and read our magazine demonstrate a commitment to excellent dentistry; they want to share ideas and debate the hot topics of the day. If you are one of the nearly 2,500 dental professionals who voted, thank you for your continued support. If you missed your chance to vote, rest assured you will have a chance to tell us your favorites in 2006.

Every year we improve our survey and your comments are always appreciated. Please send your e-mail with the subject line ‘TCA Comments’ to: tom@farranmedia.com. Thank you for your continued support of this community.

Sincerely,
Thomas Giacobbi, DDS, FAGD
Editorial Director, Dentaltown Magazine

Congratulations to our $1,000 Winner

Voters of the Townie Choice Awards were automatically entered in a drawing to win $1,000. This year’s winner is Mike Nelson, DDS of Duncan, Okla.

“I thank Dentaltown,” said Dr. Nelson. “The most exciting part was the phone call from Howard (Farran) himself. What he has done for dentistry is comparable to what Ford did for the automotive industry. I wish Dentaltown had been available back in the ‘80s. I got tired of learning everything the hard way!”

Dr. Nelson is a graduate of the Oklahoma University College of Dentistry, class of 1980. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Oklahoma Dental Foundation for Research and Education.

» Click here to view the Townie Choice Award results