麻豆社

(photos by Danny Abriel)

When Layan Abu Sneineh (DDH鈥�25) was a child and living in Saudi Arabia, she fell and broke one of her front teeth. Half of it was gone. Luckily, her dentist "gave me back my smile and became my favourite person," she says. And from that moment on, Abu Sneineh was interested in oral health. "It was just meant to be," she says.
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Abu Sneineh is Palestinian by birth and spent half her childhood in Saudi Arabia and half in Nova Scotia. At high school, she enjoyed biology, math, and art. Biology was her favourite. "I loved learning about the human body."听
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She particularly enjoyed learning about the brain and how it 鈥� and we as humans 鈥� functions. That interest led to a BSc in neuroscience at 麻豆社, where Abu Sneineh was able to explore her fascination further.听

Captivated by interconnectedness
She found herself captivated by brain plasticity and the capacity to "rewire" the brain after trauma. In the neuroanatomy lab she was able to hold a human brain. "That鈥檚 a whole human鈥檚 life you have in your hands," she says. "It鈥檚 their thoughts, their personality, emotions, and memories."
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An appreciation for the interconnectedness of the human body proved a good basis for studying oral health. "It all made sense to me," says Abu Sneineh. "Oral health has to do with our health overall. Inflammation or bacteria in the mouth travel through our bodies." She knew she wanted a career in the dental field.
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Abu Sneineh completed her BSc before making her next step, which was to apply to both the dentistry and dental hygiene programs. When she was accepted into dental hygiene, she didn鈥檛 hesitate to accept the offer.
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A strong home base
Neither of Abu Sneineh鈥檚 parents is involved in the health professions, but they both inspired her. Her father is an engineer and program manager. "He鈥檚 a very knowledgeable person," says Abu Sneineh. "Pick any subject 鈥� like how a car or plane works 鈥� and he will talk about it in very intricate details. I think he inspired my love for education."
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Abu Sneineh says that her mother is her guide. "She鈥檚 like my light," she explains. "She tells me that there is good in everything and that I鈥檓 capable of doing everything I put my mind to.鈥�"
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Her mother also drove Abu Sneineh to dental practices to drop off r茅sum茅s, resulting in a dental assisting job with Dr. Anita Marchesi (DDS鈥�12) at Kingswood Dentistry, where she worked after completing her BSc.
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The time spent at Kingswood Dentistry enabled Abu Sneineh to learn dental assisting on the job and to have a front row seat at appointments. She enjoyed watching how patients were cared for. "Lying in a dental chair is very vulnerable position, right?" she says. "As an oral health care provider, you need to remember that your patients often can鈥檛 talk, and you can鈥檛 always see their facial expressions because of the protective glasses."

Instructors as mentors
The experience Abu Sneineh gained confirmed that oral health was the career pathway for her. Even the rigorous class schedule 鈥� and the many exams 鈥� did not dissuade her. The small class size and dedicated instructors created a supportive learning environment, she says. "Having our instructors as mentors was an amazing opportunity, and learning from them shaped us as professionals and how we represent the dental hygiene profession."听
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Abu Sneineh credits the rotations to the North End Community Health Centre and Harbour View Elementary School dental clinics with being a vital part of the learning experience. She feels they helped the students to bond and provided them with experience they wouldn鈥檛 normally get in the regular student clinic.听
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The Harbour View rotation was particularly helpful because it provided hands-on experience with children. "In some cases, we were the first dental care providers they had seen," says Abu Sneineh, "so we were aware that how the children perceived the experience depended on us."
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The extended skills course, which took place in the summer after first year, enabled the class to learn about and try restorative and orthodontic procedures. Abu Sneineh discovered that she was good at working with composite, and her instructors encouraged her to consider further studies. "The seed was planted," she says.
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What next?
Abu Sneineh is returning to Kingswood Dentistry to work as a dental hygienist. Her plan is to work for a while and think about what she would like for the future. "There is always room to expand my knowledge," she says.
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Abu Sneineh鈥檚 articulates her final thoughts almost as a credo: "Believing in what you do and loving what you do and making sure you do it right, really helps you to grow as a person and enables you to take care of yourself and everyone around you."
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