I am delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Veerasamy (Jeff) Yengopal as the new Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of the Western Cape.
Prof Yengopal comes to us from the University of the Witwatersrand, where he has served as Head of Community Dentistry for many years. But he is no stranger to UWC - he earned his BChD in Dentistry from the University many years ago, and returned for his PhD in Dental Health / Community Dentistry 25 years later. (In between, he also earned his MChD in Community Dentistry from Stellenbosch University and his BSc Honours in Epidemiology from the University of Stellenbosch Business School.)
He is recognised among his peers as an academic with an outstanding publication record and excellent leadership skills. His areas of interest include child oral health, HIV/AIDS, evidence-based dentistry and dental epidemiology. He has published extensively and has presented at international conferences in most parts of the world, and established himself as an expert in evidence-based healthcare, systematic reviews and meta-analysis.
He has worked with the National Oral Health Directorate and the Department of Health on strategy documents, teaching and research initiatives, outreach prevention programmes, quality assurance, patient satisfaction, evidence-based interventions, referral systems and CPD activities. He was also a key player in the drafting of the Revised National Oral Health Strategy Document for South Africa.
His work is quoted extensively and serves as core evidence that informs on policy and evidence-based clinical decision making, and has been used as evidence to guide policy and treatment decisions by leading healthcare institutions such as the American Dental Association, National Health System (NHS – UK), the Cochrane Library, and the Forsythe Institute at Harvard.
We thank Professor Neil Myburgh for his work as Acting Dean of Dentistry over the past two years, and for helping the Faculty continue its legacy of excellence under very difficult conditions. Prof Yengopal will take up his duties from Monday, 4 October 2021, ushering in a new journey for the school.
“UWC’s Faculty of Dentistry has the potential to be a global player or a local force for community upliftment,” Prof Yengopal says. “But if we want to be both, we need to look at fostering a culture of collaboration and openness - and support. The world has changed. We need to change with it - and we need to do it together. Dentistry is about more than mouths - it’s about mindsets as well. And if we can change those, we can change the world.”
Please join me in welcoming Prof Yengopal to his new role. I trust that he will find the role of Dean very fulfilling - and help guide Africa’s largest dental school to even greater heights.
Prof Vivienne Lawack
Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Academic
Prof Yengopal comes to us from the University of the Witwatersrand, where he has served as Head of Community Dentistry for many years. But he is no stranger to UWC - he earned his BChD in Dentistry from the University many years ago, and returned for his PhD in Dental Health / Community Dentistry 25 years later. (In between, he also earned his MChD in Community Dentistry from Stellenbosch University and his BSc Honours in Epidemiology from the University of Stellenbosch Business School.)
He is recognised among his peers as an academic with an outstanding publication record and excellent leadership skills. His areas of interest include child oral health, HIV/AIDS, evidence-based dentistry and dental epidemiology. He has published extensively and has presented at international conferences in most parts of the world, and established himself as an expert in evidence-based healthcare, systematic reviews and meta-analysis.
He has worked with the National Oral Health Directorate and the Department of Health on strategy documents, teaching and research initiatives, outreach prevention programmes, quality assurance, patient satisfaction, evidence-based interventions, referral systems and CPD activities. He was also a key player in the drafting of the Revised National Oral Health Strategy Document for South Africa.
His work is quoted extensively and serves as core evidence that informs on policy and evidence-based clinical decision making, and has been used as evidence to guide policy and treatment decisions by leading healthcare institutions such as the American Dental Association, National Health System (NHS – UK), the Cochrane Library, and the Forsythe Institute at Harvard.
We thank Professor Neil Myburgh for his work as Acting Dean of Dentistry over the past two years, and for helping the Faculty continue its legacy of excellence under very difficult conditions. Prof Yengopal will take up his duties from Monday, 4 October 2021, ushering in a new journey for the school.
“UWC’s Faculty of Dentistry has the potential to be a global player or a local force for community upliftment,” Prof Yengopal says. “But if we want to be both, we need to look at fostering a culture of collaboration and openness - and support. The world has changed. We need to change with it - and we need to do it together. Dentistry is about more than mouths - it’s about mindsets as well. And if we can change those, we can change the world.”
Please join me in welcoming Prof Yengopal to his new role. I trust that he will find the role of Dean very fulfilling - and help guide Africa’s largest dental school to even greater heights.
Prof Vivienne Lawack
Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Academic
