DentaQuest Institute

Dr. Mark Doherty was named the DentaQuest Institute’s Executive Director in June 2010.  In this role, Dr. Doherty provides leadership and direction for the Institute’s quality improvement initiatives and technical assistance consulting projects and ensures that the Institute’s work is of the highest caliber. Dr. Doherty represents the DentaQuest Institute with state, regional and national audiences.

Dr. Doherty joined the DentaQuest Institute in 2005 as Director of the Institute’s Safety Net Solutions (SNS) program. Under his direction, the program has grown from a pilot in three New England community health centers to a nation program serving over 60 safety net dental programs across the United States. For nearly 30 years, Dr. Doherty served as the Director of Oral Health Services at Dorchester House Multi-Service Center in Boston, MA, where he built a safety net dental program that included three separate treatment sites, 18 dental providers, several specialty services, and a staff of more than 40. He currently serves as the Chief Dental Officer for the Taunton Oral Health Center and for Commonwealth Mobile Oral Health Services, which provides portable oral health care at sites throughout Massachusetts. He has served as a consultant for multiple organizations, including the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Massachusetts Department of Youth Services, and the University of Massachusetts Medical School. He has appointments at several institutions, including the Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Boston Medical Center, Boston University School of Dental Medicine and Lutheran Medical Center.

Dr. Doherty received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of Holy Cross in Worcester, MA and a Doctor of Dental Medicine from the University of Pennsylvania. He completed a residency in general dental practice through the Massachusetts Veterans Administration Hospital and Harvard School of Dental Medicine and was awarded a Master of Public Health from Madison University.

As Managing Director, Brian oversees planning, operations, programs, and external affairs for the DentaQuest Institute and Oral Health Center.

Brian serves on the Board of Directors of Our Space, Our Place, an organization dedicated to preparing blind youth for a lifetime of success. He also serves on the Steering Committee of the Geriatric Institute of Jewish Family & Children’s Service, and as an advisor to Only a Child, a non-profit shelter and support program for street youth in Guatemala City, Guatemala. Prior to his position with the DentaQuest Institute, Brian served as the Executive Director of the Boston Partnership for Older Adults. Additional prior appointments have included serving as an Advisor to the Charles H. Farnsworth Trust - Aging Policy Research Fellowship and the Elder Economic Security Standard Project of the University of Massachusetts Boston. Brian has a Master of Social Work Degree in Planning, Program Development and Human Service Management from Boston University School of Social Work and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology also from Boston University.

Dr. Peter Blanchard is the Dental Director of DentaQuest Oral Health Center, where he also serves as a general dentist. Formerly, Dr. Blanchard served as the Chief of Dentistry at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. Dr. Blanchard has a MBA in Health Care Management from Boston University Graduate School of Management. He received his DDS degree from Georgetown University School of Dentistry and his Bachelor of Science from Northeastern University. Dr. Blanchard is a member of the American Dental Association and the National Association of Dental Plans. In addition, he is both a National Board Member and Practitioner Investigator with the PEARL Network (Practitioners Engaged in Applied Research and Learning), sponsored by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR).

Cindy Hannon, MSW, joined the DentaQuest Institute in 2011 as Quality Improvement Manager.  Cindy oversees the quality improvement activities of the DentaQuest Institute including the expansion of the Early Childhood Caries Pilot to a dozen hospital and health center sites across the United States, and the Dental Sealant Initiative which is currently underway in five community health center dental offices in Florida and Massachusetts.  Over the past decade, Cindy has been developing and managing quality improvement, health promotion and prevention programs targeted at children and adolescents in two large metropolitan areas, Boston and Los Angeles.  She was co-creator and program manager of A+, a health promotion quality improvement toolkit for the YMCA of the USA, managing director of the UCLA/RAND Center for Adolescent Health Promotion Prevention Center, and project manager for the Harvard Prevention Research Center on Nutrition and Physical Activity's pediatric overweight quality improvement initiatives.  Cindy is a graduate of Providence College and holds a MSW degree from the Boston College Graduate School of Social Work.

Mary Ann Kozlowski is the DentaQuest Institute’s Communications Advisor. She works to disseminate information about the Institute’s programs and projects to our many constituent groups. Prior to joining the DentaQuest team, Mary Ann worked with multiple organizations in health care, education, and technology, providing communications outreach to the media and stakeholders. She holds a master’s degree in public relations and communications from Boston University.