“Everything’s always improving and moving ahead, and you have to keep up. You want to give your patients the best treatment you can.”
Dr. Ken Miller grew up surrounded by medicine in Elk Point, Alberta, just a 30-minute drive from where he practices today in St. Paul. His grandfather was a doctor from 1920 to 1972, and his father followed suit, practicing from the mid-1950s until 1995. Watching generations of his family serve their community left a mark on Ken, shaping his own path in healthcare.
Dentistry drew him in because it combined two things he loved: working with his hands and helping people. After graduating in 1981, he was determined to bring specialized care to rural Alberta, where patients often faced long trips to the city for treatment.
“Rural communities need dentists, just like cities do,” says Dr. Miller. “However, we have a slower lifestyle out here than in the city. I’m not fighting traffic for an hour to drive to work!”
Throughout his career, Dr. Miller has pursued advanced education to ensure his patients have access to expert-level care without leaving their hometown. “Everything’s always improving and moving ahead, and you have to keep up,” he reflects. “You want to give your patients the best treatment you can.”
But for him, dentistry has always been about more than procedures. “It’s the relationships,” he says. “You see patients everywhere—in the grocery store, on the golf course, around town. That’s part of being in a small town.”
Over decades, Ken has built a reputation not just as a skilled dentist but as a trusted community member. His commitment to learning, patient care, and his community’s well-being has earned him the first-ever Alberta Dental Association Lifetime Achievement Award, which was established to honour members with a minimum of 25 years of exceptional contribution to improving oral health in Alberta and advancing the profession.
Today, Dr. Miller continues the family tradition by working alongside his daughter, Dr. Julie Miller, who is also a dentist. He and his wife live in St. Paul, and in his free time, you can often find him reading, skiing, riding his motorbike, or enjoying nearby lakes.
Article by Amir Grozdanic
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