By Mackenzie Meleski

Sara Khraibut has called Richmond home for more than a decade. Now she is returning to her home country of Kuwait where the periodontist will extend the legacy of a longstanding partnership between the Persian Gulf country and Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Dentistry.

It’s a bittersweet feeling for Khraibut, who is completing her periodontics residency, but she is grateful for how VCU has propelled her to the next chapter in her career.

“Richmond has been my second home and where I’ve spent most of my adult life,” said Khraibut, who earned her undergraduate biology degree from VCU in 2016 and her D.D.S. from the School of Dentistry in 2020. “VCU has left such a significant impact on my life and helped shape me into the person I am today.”

Growing up in a large family with diverse professional interests and careers, Khraibut was inspired to find her own niche. She wanted to become a doctor but was equally drawn to working with her hands and creating tangible results. Dentistry combined her interest in clinical expertise with craftsmanship and precision.

“I was lucky to grow up with a family that encouraged creativity, and also one that was supportive of my passion for dentistry,” Khraibut said. “That creativity, combined with my gravitation toward science, made dentistry the perfect fit.”

She expressed her interest to her childhood dentist, who introduced to the idea of attending VCU – and where she, too, had earned undergraduate and dental degrees.

“She made me realize that dentistry goes far beyond addressing a chief complaint,” Khraibut said. “What stood out to me was the way she interacted with her patients. She paid attention to the small details that made people feel comfortable, heard and cared for. Coming from Kuwait, that was something I had not seen emphasized to the same extent before. Watching her practice showed me how much of dentistry is built on trust and human connection. That was one of the moments that convinced me VCU had something special to offer.”

Since 1995, VCU’s School of Dentistry has welcomed students from Kuwait. The partnership has produced over 100 graduates who have practiced in the United States or internationally, and it has created a tight-knit community both in Richmond and beyond.

“What’s beautiful about periodontics is that you have one diagnosis, but you can have different ways of treatment,” Sara Khraibut said. (School of Dentistry)

“When you go back and practice in Kuwait, you get to see and work with dentists who graduated from different institutions all over the world,” Khraibut said. “But the graduates from VCU have clinical standards that are unparalleled.”

As both an undergraduate and dental student, Khraibut formed close relationships at VCU and grew significantly as a person and clinician. As she considered specialties to pursue in a residency, periodontics – with its focus on the gums, jawbone and implants – appealed to her interests in detail and creativity: It requires the precision of a surgeon, the eye of an artist and the ability to think prosthetically, always keeping the final restoration in mind.

“It brought me back to my artistic roots,” Khraibut said. “It’s not a one-dimensional specialty. It’s a very detail-oriented and meticulous form of surgery, and that was exactly what I was looking for.”

Due to the small size of their cohorts and the intensity of their work, the periodontics residents form close bonds that often last a lifetime. Khraibut cited these ties as her favorite part of the three-year program, which included the close mentorship of faculty.

“What’s beautiful about periodontics is that you have one diagnosis, but you can have different ways of treatment,” Khraibut said. “It’s fun to work with different faculty and see the different ways to approach treatment and different approaches.”

Rafael Siqueira, D.D.S., Ph.D., serves as director of the periodontics graduate program and connected with Khraibut through their passion for dental photography.

“Dr. Khraibut quickly bloomed into a confident and capable clinician who was never afraid to face challenges or complex situations,” Siqueira said. “Her dedication to excellence consistently elevated the learning and clinical experience for everyone around her. Her dental photography is among the best I have seen and serves as an excellent reflection of her growth, exceptional attention to details and unwavering drive for excellence.”

Upon returning to Kuwait, Khraibut will work for the Ministry of Health as a periodontist in a dental specialty center, part of a multispecialty team alongside prosthodontists, endodontists, orthodontists and oral surgeons as well as other specialists. She has committed three years to the Ministry of Health, and she also intends to work in private practice in Kuwait City.

As Khraibut packs up her life in Richmond, she thinks about how her youthful passion for dentistry took her far from home – and now back again.

“I would tell anyone considering this path to keep going, even when things don’t unfold exactly as planned,” Khraibut said. “The journey isn’t always linear, and that’s the beauty of it. Some days feel incredibly long, but before you know it, years have passed. Looking back, it’s hard to believe that 11 years have gone by.”

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