About CDAD / History
from an address delivered at The First National Conference on Alcohol and Chemical Dependency in the Dental Profession, July 24, 1985 by Alfred C. Peters, DMD, CDAD Co-founder
In the late 1970's Massachusetts was one of a few states that recognized the effects chemical dependency has not only on the individual dentist but also the entire dental organization. The Committee on Drug and Alcohol Dependency (CDAD) of The Massachusetts Dental Society (MDS), along with other state committees, was founded to assume responsibility for addressing this illness.
CDAD initially met with considerable resistance from members of the society who felt it was inappropriate to allow the public to know that dentists, too, are at risk for this disease. The committee's first goal was to change attitudes, seeking avenues to create understanding and awareness through educating MDS consituents, dental educators, and the Board of Registration in Dentistry (BORID).