Smitha Sukumar

Dr. Smitha Sukumar is a Senior Lecturer and Discipline Lead for Treatment Planning in the Doctor of Dental Medicine (DMD) program at the University of Sydney's Sydney Dental School. She is also a practicing dentist and early career clinician-scientist at the Charles Perkins Centre's Adler Laboratory, focusing on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the oral microbiome. Her research explores AMR dissemination pathways and its implications for bioactive dental materials development. She holds an MSc in Conservative Dentistry from UCL Eastman Dental Institute and is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons.

• Education: MSc (Conservative Dentistry, UCL Eastman Dental Institute), Fellow (FRACDS)
• Key Roles: Curriculum Development Lead, Clinical Educator, Research Supervisor
• Research Themes: One Health, Genomic Surveillance, Antibiotic Stewardship

Her teaching emphasizes digital innovation in assessment and evidence-based practice, with leadership roles including Clinic Coordinator and Course Coordinator. She has presented internationally and published extensively on dental education and AMR. Awards include the 2022 Best Oral Presentation Award and 2017 Fellow of the International College of Dentists.

Recent work includes studies on oral resistome development in children and the impact of AI chatbots in patient history-taking. She collaborates with institutions like Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and participates in global AMR networks.