SEMINAR: Whoops: Aussie kids� dental decay reported as �somewhat inflated�. Ethical Dilemmas in Money, Research and Policy

The Seminar: Modern research in public health can make substantial differences to millions of people. With this scale in change comes responsibility. Responsibility in ensuring high quality evidence-based decisions are made, resting on good, sound evidence. It brings substantive risk when evidence is misused, misinterpreted, or reflecting a situation that is removed from reality, through inappropriate sampling or data analysis perceptions. Decisions that affect millions of people, and cost hundreds of millions of dollars, may not result in the change that was originally desired, or see resources directed where they are needed. This is a substantial pressure added to public health researchers to ensure sound scientific methodology and clarity in their data and analysis. This seminar will reflect on these pressures and dilemmas as learnings for all.

The Speaker: Marc has been an academic for over 25 years he is currently the Director (and Founder) of the International Research Collaborative - Oral Health and Equity in Human Sciences at UWA and has served in senior leadership roles in Universities across Australia. The Collaborative is a global leader in driving reform focused on marginalisation and addressing health inequality. The team is recognised as the leading oral health R&D group in Western Australia and in 2015-16 Marc was again the most published Australian in dentistry. Marc remains in the top half dozen dental Australian academics for impact, with 200 publications and $15-20million in R&D funding. He and the Collaborative team hold 8 of the top dozen most cited articles in oral health in Western Australian history. The Collaborative is strongly focused on enhancing the leadership base in health globally; influence stretching from the Middle East through the sub-continent to Asia and out into the Pacific (www.ircohe.net) and has more than 120 Fellows and about 40 graduate students. This world-class group has been acknowledged by WHO within inclusion in its Global Workforce Influences. Marc is also a member of the FDI global expert team on quality in dental practice. Marc has received many awards acknowledging this lifetime commitment to the reform agenda in oral health. Recently had a café named in his honour. Marc has honourary professorial appointments in 6 Universities, is a life-Fellow of the Brocher Foundation (Geneva), a life-Fellow of the dental students society for services (UWA) to services to students and a life-Fellow of Saint Catherine’s College (Perth), for services to the community. Marc is a Fellow of the RACDS by acclimation; one of only two in WA history and has received awards for his commitment to health consumers in WA. Marc’s social media influence is substantial his Twitter handle is the most read personal handle in dental public health in Australia (and one of the top half dozen at UWA) with 75,000+ readers each day and his YouTube channels have reached over a third of a million viewers in 125 countries. Marc has served in many executive leadership roles (Dean and Head of School roles) in Dental Schools both locally and interstate; managing complex stakeholder interactions, including government, universities and communities. He has led the resurgence of dental education in Australia. Marc continues his lifelong efforts towards reducing social disadvantage and marginalisation