What You Can Carry Into Practice and Research
On May 12, practitioners, researchers, and students from across the National Dental Practice-Based Research Network gathered at the University of Illinois Chicago College of Dentistry for the 2026 National Meeting. The program focused on practical study findings, whole-person health, and the next phase of practice-based research that will shape how the Network supports your work in the years ahead.
Whole-person health is moving to the center of dental care
Keynote speaker Dr. Daniel W. McNeil opened the meeting by linking oral health to behavioral and systemic health, reinforcing a message many clinicians see every day in practice: your patients’ oral conditions do not exist in isolation. His remarks framed dental teams as essential contributors to identifying broader health factors that influence outcomes, not just providers of procedure-based care.
That emphasis matters because it aligns clinical observation with research priorities. As the Network continues to study care delivery in real-world settings, medical-dental integration is becoming more relevant to the questions practitioners ask, the collaborations they build, and the evidence they can apply chairside.