James Q. Swift receives Distinguished Service Award

James Q. Swift, DDS [LINK TO BIO], Minneapolis, MN, received the 2015 Robert V. Walker Distinguished Service Award on September 30, 2015, during the opening ceremony of the 97th Annual Meeting, Scientific Sessions and Exhibition of American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons in Washington D.C. Dr. Swift was recognized for his significant and lasting contributions to the specialty.

Dr. Swift is professor in the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry. He is world-renowned for his research in the areas of inflammatory mediators and pain, and has also done clinical research in the area of temporomandibular disorders and inflammatory mediators of the temporomandibular joint space.

In addition to his position at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Swift is chairman of the OMS National Insurance Company, the Risk Retention Group offering professional liability coverage to oral and maxillofacial surgeons. Over 80% of eligible OMSs in the United States are insured by OMSNIC.

Dr. Swift is a diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, and a fellow of the American and International Colleges of Dentists. He is a former president of both the American Dental Education Association and the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. In 2009 he received the Distinguished Service Award from the American Dental Education Association.

A native of Manchester, Iowa, Dr. Swift graduated cum laude from Cornell College, Mount Vernon, Iowa. After graduating from the University of Iowa College of Dentistry and completing a general practice residency at Oklahoma Children’s Memorial Hospital, Dr. Swift completed his oral and maxillofacial surgery residency training at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.