Stanberry dentist receives initial AHEC Alumni/Advocate of the Year Award

Dr. Fallon L. Stiens, DDS, Stanberry, was announced as a winner of our inaugural AHEC Alumni/Advocates of the Year award recently.

This annual AHEC Alumni/Advocate award is given by NAO to an individual who has exhibited ongoing exceptional service to the AHEC mission.

Stiens was introduced to AHEC as a high school senior. She has hosted several rural dentistry workshops for high school and undergraduate students in which students complete hands-on activities in her dental office, and so much more.

Her nomination form was completed by Becky Kendrick, NWMO AHEC director:

“When we tell people that Fallon Stiens, DDS is an AHEC ‘poster child,’ they often chuckle. We say, ‘No, really! She is on one of our posters!’ Dr. Fallon is literally and figuratively an AHEC poster child as she posed while in dental school for a poster that we used for many years. She is the perfect example of a rural student utilizing the resources that AHEC has to offer. Fallon is from a rural town in Northwest Missouri and was first introduced to AHEC as a high school senior at Northeast Nodaway in 2005 and later became actively involved as a pre-dentistry student at Northwest Missouri State University. She attended dental school at UMKC School of Dentistry and returned to rural northwest Missouri in 2013 as a private practitioner in Stanberry. She is a proud and contributing member of the Northwest Missouri Dental Society, the Missouri Dental Association, and the American Dental Association focusing on new dentist involvement, legislative issues and rural practice matters.

“Dr. Fallon’s contributions to AHEC since becoming a practicing professional are numerous. She has hosted several rural dentistry workshops for high school and undergraduate students in which students complete hands-on, and fun, activities in her dental office. She has been an advocate for AHEC while raising funds so more students could participate in programs. She is willing to help students in any way she can. Currently, she has many students who job shadow in her clinic, and she desires to offer dental students a rural experience during clinical training. She frequently meets students from the small communities in NWMO, and she enthusiastically refers them to AHEC when learning of their interest in a healthcare career. This year, Dr. Fallon joined the NWMO AHEC Advisory Board so she can help shape the future of AHEC and assist students in creating their own success stories.“Dr. Fallon has been positively impacted by her participation and involvement in AHEC, and she does all she can to ensure students are given the same opportunities she was afforded. She is more than deserving of this award and recognition!”