A renowned South African oral-health expert and University of the Western Cape (UWC) researcher, Prof Sudeshni Naidoo, has been awarded one of the highest honours in global dental research, placing the spotlight on her decades of work improving oral health in disadvantaged communities.
Research award
The US-based International Association for Dental, Oral and Craniofacial Research (IADR) has named Prof Naidoo as the 2026 recipient of the Distinguished Scientist John Greenspan Global Oral Health Research Award. Named after the well-known researcher, pathologist and public health specialist Prof John Greenspan, who died in 2023, the award recognises outstanding contributions to improving oral health worldwide.
She received the award at the opening ceremony of the IADR’s 104th General Session held in San Diego from 25 to 28 March.
Naidoo, who is the Director of the UWC World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Oral Health, where her work contributes to shaping policies and programmes that promote better health outcomes globally, said the latest recognition is an encouragement to continue pushing for oral health to be an integral part of public health, not as a secondary concern.
“If this award signals anything, it is that this neglected field is finally gaining visibility and research that is grounded in equity, prevention, and systems thinking is beginning to resonate more widely.”
Having met Greenspan in the early ’90s at the height of the HIV pandemic and collaborating with him on some of her research, she said that while receiving global recognition is remarkable, the award also reflects the collaborative effort of peers forged over the years.
Other key milestones include collaboration on the World Health Organization Global Oral Health Strategy and Action Plan (GOHAP) 2023–2030 and its implementation as well as efforts to strengthen evidence for integrating oral health into primary health care and universal health coverage.
Improving oral health
Some of Naidoo’s work at UWC’s Faculty of Dentistry has focused on improving oral health in communities, including education, dental-public health training, how diseases and nutrition affect oral health, and how technology can improve access to care.
Speaking about oral-health-care challenges in Africa and South Africa, she highlighted the deep inequalities many people face when seeking services.
“Most oral diseases are preventable, yet they remain highly prevalent. This reflects structural issues, which are unequal access to care, over-reliance on treatment rather than prevention, and health systems that do not adequately integrate oral health.”
Naidoo believes focusing more on prevention, strengthening oral-health services at a primary-health-care level and ensuring that dental professionals are more evenly distributed beyond major cities could significantly improve access to care.
“The central challenge is not a lack of knowledge, but a gap between what we know and what is implemented.”
She hopes to use her latest recognition to inspire young researchers. “We know that awards can open doors and create visibility, but their real value lies in how they are used. For young researchers, the message is that impactful work often lies at the intersection of disciplines and between research and practice. It requires persistence, collaboration, and a willingness to engage with real-world complexity.”
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