By: Dr. Rachel Yang-Lim

July 3, 2024

When I accepted this honor of heading the PBO four years ago, I set forth two main goals: membership growth and universities craving PBO accreditation. While these were very long term and challenging goals, I’m happy to report that we have achieved a little of both.

In 2021, we proudly added a new diplomate to our ranks. Then in 2022, the University of the Philippines graduate program in orthodontics was accredited by the Philippine Board of Orthodontics. I am hopeful that more diplomates and universities will follow suit in the years to come.

While we sought to increase our ranks, your PBO also continued to serve as theexamination arm of the APO; conferring board certification to Orthodontists who met the requirements.

The Diplomates of the PBO have also been checking on fellows of APO and encouraging them to elevate their status by accepting the challenge of taking the board certification examinations.

Our public and professional relations committee has initiated a social media awareness campaign for the PBO via Instagram and Facebook with the objectives of highlighting the importance of choosing qualified orthodontic practitioners and raising the level of awareness about orthodontics as a specialty of dentistry.

The executive council also began work in 2023 on amending the constitution and by-laws of the PBO. We are close to completion and we hope to submit this to the Securities and Exchange Commission before our term ends in December of this year.

We have also been working closely with the Association of the Philippine Orthodontists (APO), Professional Regulatory Board of Dentistry (PRBOD) and the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) for the Career Progression Specialization Program – Credit Accumulation and Transfer System or the CPSP-CATS for short. The program that both APO and PBO have created is pending final approval for rollout and implementation.

All of the work we have achieved in the last four years were born out of a collective effort from all the Diplomates. I am especially grateful to my very active and supportive Executive Council and to the members of the different committees. I couldn’t have asked for more. I would like to single out my ever-efficient secretary Dr. Annie Kopio. She has certainly made my work lighter. Thank you very much for the support you showed for the past four years of my term as your chairperson.

And so, we come to my final task as Chairperson: to make sure that the PBO will be led by a new and dynamic team in 2025 and beyond. I am happy that the outgoing executive council will be succeeded by another strong team that will serve as the new driving force of the PBO. To my successor, Dr. Dennis Lim, I sincerely wish you all the best. May you and your team continue to bring PBO to greater heights.

My job as PBO chairperson ends here but my commitment to membership growth and university accreditation will go on. I will continue to encourage universities to seek PBO accreditation for their Orthodontic programs. Most importantly, I will continue to encourage APO members to take the challenge of becoming board certified to be true Orthodontic specialists!

Before I end, please indulge me one more time. As a way of showing my heartfelt appreciation for all your dedication, hard work and commitment to the PBO, please allow me to give these certificates of appreciation to my Executive Council, members of the Examination committee, members of the Accreditation and Credentials committee, members of the Judicial and Ethics
committee, members of the Public and Professional Relations committee and everyone who did a great part for this term.