Annual Session Courses

• Learn: To injection mold to treat black triangles, peg laterals, fractured teeth, and diastemas
• Learn: To achieve ultra glossy stain proof anterior restorations
• Learn: To safely heat composite and why
• Learn: Why injection molded composite is superior to traditional hand-spackled composite

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: Room 410 C, Boise Centre East
• by Susan Cotten, BSDH, RDH, OMT

As dental professionals, we learn and talk most about oral cancer. Now, the HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer epidemic is a critical topic to discuss. Dental professionals are whole-body prevention specialists, and this includes going beyond oral cancer to screen for signs and symptoms related to other cancers and conditions of the head and neck. Susan understands this first-hand, as she was diagnosed with a common head and neck condition - Laryngopharyngeal Reflux, which is a risk factor for laryngeal cancer. 

Join oral cancer coach Susan Cotten, BSDH, RDH, OMT, to explore other cancers and conditions of the head and neck, who may be at risk, and the important role dental professionals have in screening to identify potential signs and symptoms that deserve a referral and further investigation by the appropriate specialist. 

Attendees will leave inspired and equipped with strategies and verbiage to implement this knowledge into their comprehensive screening, risk assessment, and office protocol. Together We Will Save Lives!

Objectives:

1. List head and neck cancers beyond oral and oropharyngeal cancer.

2. Recognize exposure to toxins and carcinogens first responders and victims of wildfires and urban wildfires may experience.

3. Name the signs and symptoms associated with head and neck cancers and conditions.

4. Demonstrate proper extroral palpation and explain lymphadenopathy.

5. Develop a plan to implement a comprehensive risk assessment and screening form as a standard protocol in patient care

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by Dr. Donald Chi

Description

Fluoride is one of the few evidence-based therapies known to prevent tooth decay. However, recent data indicate that a growing number of parents and communities are hesitant about fluoride, with substantive numbers of parents who refuse it during dental visits. In this program, Dr. Chi will outline the history of fluoride hesitancy, discuss recent epidemiological data on prevalence, describe the reasons why parents are hesitant about fluoride, and provide tips on how to manage hesitancy in clinical practice.

Objectives

1) Quantify how common fluoride hesitancy is in practice.

2) Describe reasons why parents are hesitant about fluoride.

3) Outline clinical strategies to address fluoride hesitancy.

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: 410C, Boise Centre East
• by Susan Cotten, BS, RDH, OMT

Join oral cancer coach Susan Cotten, BS, RDH, OMT, developer of The Cotten Method™ of Screening, for this intensive program designed to elevate and calibrate dentistry’s oral cancer screening.

This course will unpack the etiologies of oral and oropharyngeal cancer, the additional risk factors for oral cancer – risk is more than tobacco and alcohol, review the components of a comprehensive oral cancer screening, including the often overlooked signs and symptoms associated with oral and oropharyngeal cancer. Current ADA and ADHA oral cancer policies, coding for oral cancer screening, and comprehensive documentation will be discussed. 

Both dental hygienists and dentists play a critical role in early detection. This course is a call to action: to elevate the standard of care in screening, reduce the risk of liability for the dental professional, and increase early detection. All attendees will receive a Cotten MethodTM of Screening ‘Risk Assessment’ form. A comprehensive screening isn’t optional, it’s critical. Let’s close the gap together!

Objectives:

1. Name the additional risk factors for oral cancer, beyond tobacco and alcohol.

2. Summarize areas of liability for the dental professional in oral cancer.

3. List the components of a comprehensive visual and tactile, extraoral, intraoral evaluation.

4. Explain the signs and symptoms associated with oral and oropharyngeal cancer.

• Audience: Dentists
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by Dr. David Clark

• Learn: How injection molding is better, faster, and stronger then layering
• Learn: How to determine if injection molding or crowns are appropriate restorations
• Learn: How clear matrices are a game changer
• Learn: Why to use heated composite
• Learn: Why selective caries removal is the new standard of care

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by Shon Davis, Field Service Specialist, Burkhart Dental Supply

Burkhart Dental presents a one hour presentation on the required maintenance in the operatory, sterilization and mechanical room. Help keep your equipment running smooth and lasting for a long time.

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by Dr. Shawn Naccarato

• to provide basic information about what prescription drug diversion is and the types of prescriptions that are commonly diverted
• to provide information regarding the various ways prescription drugs are diverted, the reasons prescription drugs are diverted, the types of individuals who divert prescriptions, and common behavioral presentations of drug diverters
• to provide information about the relationship of certain types of prescription drugs and certain types of illegal drugs

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by Teresa Jardine, Dental Cooperative, ID & WA Area Director

Objectives:

1. Identify key insurance industry trends projected for 2026
2. Evaluate common risk factors that place dental practices at financial or contractual disadvantage
3. Analyze payor policies, participation agreements, and reimbursement models
4. Implement practical strategies to improve insurance utilization, fee management, and collections
5. Develop an action plan to proactively position their practice for success

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: Room 420, Boise Centre East
• by Judge Derek Mosley

Unconscious Bias is a learned stereotype that is automatic, unintentional, deeply ingrained, universal, and able to influence behavior. Unconscious bias seeps into decisions that affect recruitment, retention, hiring, access to healthcare, banking, housing, education, the justice system, providing services, interpersonal interactions, and outcomes in ways that can disadvantage both individuals and groups of people. We all have some form of unconscious bias, and the key is to recognize that we have it and employ techniques to mitigate it.

In this session you will:

1.  Learn to assess and measure your unconscious bias

2.  Be able to define unconscious bias

3.  Learn the history of unconscious bias in America

4.  Learn how subconsciously, decisions are being made in your mind

5.  Learn how unconscious bias affects everyday life

6.  Finally, learn ways to mitigate your bias

• Audience: Hands-On Workshop Pre-registered $40
• Location: 410 C, Boise Centre East
• by Susan Cotten, BSDH, RDH, OMT

Course Description:
Early detection saves lives, and a comprehensive oral cancer screening is critical to optimal patient care. Yet many dental professionals feel uncertain of their clinical skills when it comes to performing a comprehensive oral cancer screening. This hands-on workshop is designed to change that and to aid in decreasing liability for the dental professional.

Using Susan’s instructional screening videos, case discussions, and step-by-step demonstrations, you’ll learn proper palpation techniques, assessment of the thyroid and oropharynx, tonsil grade and Mallampati score documentation, and learn the signs and symptoms associated with oral and oropharyngeal cancer.

Attendees will don masks and gloves and partner up to practice a full screening in a supportive, encouraging environment. Susan will coach you through the process, offering real-time feedback to strengthen your skills. You will leave with the confidence to implement what you’ve learned immediately, and attendees will receive The Cotten Method™ screening packet to support you in practice. Let’s close the gap between education and implementation—one confident screening at a time.

Objectives:

1. Demonstrate a comprehensive visual and tactile, extraoral, intraoral, evaluation/oral cancer screening.

2. Execute locating the thyroid gland and palpate each lobe.

3. Demonstrate proper extraoral palpation technique.

4. Identify and document Tonsil grade and Mallampati score.

5. Recognize signs and symptoms associated with oral and oropharyngeal cancer.

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: Room 420, Boise Centre East
• by Dr. David Clark, Bioclear Matrix

• Learn: Learn to have confidence identifying early tooth fracturing
• Learn: Learn why new Class II cavity preparations and other modalities are crucial to prevent eventual tooth fracture
• Learn: Receive a blueprint for diagnosis and treatment of complete and incomplete fractures
• Learn: Understand the Fissurotomy, Calla Lily, and Overlay preparations for Class I and Class II restorations

• Audience: Hands-On Workshop Pre-registered $100
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by Dr. David Clark

• Learn: The 6 steps to achieve rock solid posterior contacts in even the most difficult cases
• Learn: How can you combine flowable & regular composites with the injection molding technique & when to use bulk fills
• Learn: Treating the dreaded black triangle, especially common after tray aligner therapy
• Learn: How to handle heated composites

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by John Khademi, DDS, MS

The image-generating process and logistics for reviewing CBCT studies are radically different from that of projection radiography, along with being counter-intuitive, and not widely appreciated in dentistry.  The sheer number of possible views with CBCT coupled with the interpretive issues confound both CBCT and projection radiography which has led to guidelines and position papers for prescribing and interpreting imaging studies.  These guidelines claim to be scientifically-based, but are not based on what has been learned about the interpretive process in medical radiology.  Medical radiology has a long and deep history of academic inquiry into perception metrology and the radiographic interpretive process.  This presentation will review key research findings, introduce guidelines and best practices for interpreting CBCT based on what has been learned about the perceptual and cognitive processes from medical radiology.  We will develop these protocols using real clinical cases from the presenter’s practice.

Learning Objectives:

·      Understand and optimize your image-exposure parameters (technique factors)

·      Get an introduction to the image-generation process for CBCT

·      Have an explicit strategy for efficiently reviewing focused-field, single-arch, ½ arch and dual-arch studies

·      Gain a window into the subtle perceptual and cognitive issues with image interpretation

·      Understand the role of explicit, tacit and embedded history in the interpretive process

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by John Khademi, DDS, MS

Past decades have highlighted the importance of preserving & retaining as much tooth structure as possible for long-term outcomes.  Combining magnification, cone-beam CT, modern heat-treated NiTi instrumentation and advanced irrigation technologies allows ultra-conservative access and instrumentation. These advancements are facilitating a shift in endodontic treatment by maximizing traditional objectives of endodontic treatment of debridement and disinfection while minimizing the endodontic treatment footprint on the loss of precious pericervical dentin.  
We will review the legacy endodontic triad-based/clean-shape-pack conventional instrumentation Endodontics 1.0 (CIE) paradigm, introduce materials, instruments and techniques for minimally-invasive Endodontics 2.0 (MIE), culminating in non-instrumentation Endodontics 3.0 (NIE). This presentation will introduce materials, instruments and techniques that will meet the clinician where they are, and help the clinician begin to make the transition to the next level of endodontic excellence.

Learning Objectives:

·      Review the three endodontic paradigms: Endodontics 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0

·      Introduce strategies for minimally-invasive endodontics in the general dental practice

·      Understand the new role of endodontic files in non-instrumentation endodontics (NIE)

·      Introduce the the concepts of Cleaning-in-Place (CIP) and advanced irrigation 

·      Introduce the Mechanism of Action (MoA) of Gentlewave

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD
• by Shon Davis, Burkhart, Field Service Specialist 

Burkhart Dental presents a one hour presentation on the required maintenance in the operatory, sterilization and mechanical room. Help keep your equipment running smooth and lasting for a long time.

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD
• by Dr. Jennifer Eisenhuth & Peter Eisenhuth

COURSE SUMMARY:  Explore the history of Nano Hydroxyapatite (nHAp) development from NASA's pioneering work in the 1970's to its diverse applications in the medical and dental fields over the past four decades.  Delve into a comprehensive review of clinical studies validating nHAp as a gain valuable insights into additional research supporting nHAp's ability to effectively manage hypersensitivity and discover the enhanced remineralization potential achieved when nHAp is combined with fluoride in toothpaste formulations.  Don't miss the opportunity to stay at the forefront of dental innovation and elevate your clinical practice.

• Describe the science behind  nHAp and applications in preventive oral care products.
• Review 3rd party non-funded clinical studies supporting nHAp as a clinically proven enamel remineralizing ingredient.
• Compare and contrast concentrations and particle sizes of nHAp toothpaste brands for their ethicality, and occurrence of enamel remineralization.
• Recognize fluoride free (oral care) products are not FDA regulated.
• Effectively communicate to  patients the science behind nHAP as a clinically proven remineralizing ingredient when choosing oral care products

• Audience: All Dental Professionals
• Location: TBD, Boise Centre East
• by Steven Miles, DDS, MBA