Dentistry professor Abbas Jessani named one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40

Dr. Abbas Jessani, an associate professor in dentistry and in epidemiology and biostatistics at Schulich Medicine & Dentistry, is among the 2026 recipients of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40. The national award recognizes 40 Canadians under the age of 40 for leadership, community impact and achievement.

Jessani was born and raised in Pakistan and completed a dental degree at the University of Karachi. He came to Canada in 2011 for graduate studies, earned his MSc and PhD in public health dentistry at the University of British Columbia, and began teaching at the University of Saskatchewan before joining Schulich as an assistant professor in 2020.

He leads the Community Service Learning in Oral Health program, which works with communities in Southwestern Ontario and East Africa to improve access to oral health care for socially marginalized people. He defines equitable care as everyone being “treated with dignity and respect.”