Melbourne Dental School has been part of my life since the early 2000s, when I began my journey as a PhD and Honours student under the supervision of Professor John Clement, who held the inaugural Chair in Forensic Odontology.
So, I am excited and privileged to take on the role of Interim Head of School and I look forward to supporting our people and the many activities of the School.
In my time at the School, I’ve seen many advancements across different disciplines. Increasing recognition of the intimate connection between the mouth, oral cavity, other systems in our body and our general health has expanded our research and led to more interdisciplinary collaborations. There is certainly some important work happening within Melbourne Dental School.
I am often asked why, as an anatomist, I am based at the dental school. I work with bones, teeth and dental calculus and this school has the highest concentration of mineralised tissue samples, making it important for my research aims.
My research portfolio is broad but one of my key interests is the digital representation of mineralised tissues using microcomputed tomography — a very advanced form of high-resolution imaging — and other imaging techniques.
I am passionate about developing interdisciplinary research that bridges biological anthropology and clinical perspectives and that answers different questions about bone and teeth ageing.
Mainly, I am interested in how we can leverage mineralised tissues to provide information about life events, growth, development and health status. Mineralised tissues are the ideal tissues to examine when investigating these areas: they incorporate so much of our environment and activities in their structure. This research direction also relies heavily on collaboration with other disciplines such as clinicians, archaeologists and anthropologists. This is something I really enjoy, and consider important.
I am currently working on a major project based on the ‘Metro teeth’ discovered in 2018 during excavation work for the new Metro Tunnel. A collection of about 2500 teeth was discovered on two sites on Swanston Street. Those sites were the location of dental clinics in the late 1800s and early 1900s and most of the teeth were found in a collapsed drainpipe.
We’ve been working with historians to learn about Melbourne during that era and to find out more about what dentistry practices were like at that time. We will be creating a website for those interested in finding out more about the teeth and what we uncover.
I am also working on a research project looking at heavy metal accumulation in teeth through our lifetime and projects that determine how bones change as we age. They tend to deteriorate and finding out more about how bones change could one day lead to therapies that can arrest, reverse or prevent that deterioration.
This research also has implications for how well implants can work in a person as they age.
Anatomy is my love but I am now looking through a different lens as Interim Head of School. My goal is to support the people we have within Melbourne Dental School and to ensure they have the opportunities and tools they need to excel at their passions. We are on a good trajectory and, together, we must maintain that momentum.
We are in the middle of a major curriculum review and my last act as Director of Research was to finalise our new research strategy. We exist as a School and University in a changing and dynamic landscape. We need to think about how we build sustainability into our activities and how we grow our impact, our people and their careers.
The new strategy has clear objectives to help us achieve this, like diversifying our funding sources, building our research capabilities, working more with partners and developing partnerships and research collaborations external to the dental school.
We are also finalising the terms of reference and role description for our new Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion — another important factor in advancing the School community.
As I begin this new role, I also aim to foster a nurturing environment where students have a say in the development of their learning, interaction and collaboration with the School. We want them to flourish and for our School to be a safe, inclusive and fulfilling place that offers support and opportunity.
Thank you
Associate Professor Rita Hardiman
Interim Head of School, Melbourne Dental School
Read more from Dent-AL 2024
Changes and new beginnings Next: Family and philanthropy: supports for a Yemeni dentist