Published: 4 September 2025
Associate Professor Wong Mun Loke, Vice Dean (Education) of NUS Dentistry and Associate Provost (Integrated Education) of the Office of the Provost, as well as Dr Gabriel Lee, Director of NUS Dentistry’s Graduate Diploma Geriatric Dentistry Residency Programme, were invited to participate in the inaugural ASEAN Geriatric Dentistry Conference organised by Universiti Malaya from 14 to 16 August 2025. Themed “Connecting, Collaborating and Co-developing for the Future”, the conference was held in Kuala Lumpur and saw over 400 delegates hailing from the ASEAN region and the international community.
The three-day conference shed light on considerations and strategies in managing oral conditions and promoting oral health among older adults. It also looked at how oral healthcare professionals can be better equipped to manage oral health needs of older adults through education and capacity building. Conference presentations piqued the interests of participants and stimulated in-depth discussions around the co-development of plans to improve geriatric oral health.
Within the conference, Assoc Prof Wong moderated a forum discussion on “Advancing Geriatric Dentistry through a Collaborative, Integrated and Multi-Disciplinary Approach” where five distinguished speakers shared their insights and experiences around the importance of addressing geriatric oral health with an inter-professional and multi-disciplinary strategy. Assoc Prof Wong was also the chief judge for the conference’s oral presentation sessions covering a variety of topics around Geriatric Dentistry. Meanwhile, Dr Lee shared his experiences and work around “Promoting Preventive Oral Health Care among the Frail and Functionally Dependent Older Adults” at his presentation during one of the conference’s symposia.
“It was encouraging and inspiring to see like-minded academics, clinicians, and educators coming together to collective contribute towards the discussions to address this growing area of need. There was also an opportunity to learn from one another and sharpen our perspectives on how we can do our part to enhance the oral health and wellbeing of the older adult population. With colleagues from the National University Centre for Oral Health Singapore and the National University Polyclinics alongside NUS Dentistry, attending the conference together reinforces the value of collaborative practice to bring Geriatric Dentistry to greater heights and improve the oral health of seniors.” – Assoc Prof Wong
The older adult population lends itself to numerous opportunities for oral healthcare to make a positive impact on the populace’s lives and wellbeing. NUS Dentistry is honoured to have been a part of this inaugural conference. The representation of colleagues from the Faculty, the National University Centre for Oral Health Singapore (NUCOHS), and the National University Polyclinics (NUP) at this conference reflects a collective belief in the holistic and collaborative approach to manage geriatric oral health needs across primary care and tertiary care involving clinicians, educators, and researchers from the dental fraternity as well as the wider healthcare profession.
Assoc Prof Wong Mun Loke and Dr Gabriel Lee were invited to participate in the inaugural ASEAN Geriatric Dentistry Conference organised by Universiti Malaya from 14 to 16 August 2025.
(Image credits: University of Malaya)
