I'm always delighted to write about products innovated and created by our colleagues. Read on to learn about a dentist who writes children's books, and two entrepreneurial hygienists...
So much has changed for me in the last year. The time has been filled with loss, learning, and reflection - all of which impacted my career in some fashion. Friends, family, and...
One of the goals of a comedian is to make the audience laugh while decreasing their resistance to discussing a topic that makes them feel uncomfortable. When an audience lowers...
The dental hygienist spotlight this month focuses on a California registered dental hygienist in alternative practice (RDHAP) who serves those in need at her own practice and ...
Years ago, as a single mom, I often referred to my sons affectionately as "the animals." At six and eight, they were energetic and busy as massive laundry generators and active...
The stress of our day job can produce a wide range of emotions. From anxiety and frustration to satisfaction and accomplishment, it can sometimes feel like an emotional roller...
Dear Dianne, My biggest dilemma as a hygienist is in communicating treatment needs to patients. I hate telling them that they need expensive root planing or other treatment. I...
In last month's column, I started a series about the office "drama queen." What is it about certain personalities that you love or just cannot stand? Dealing with certain personality...
Over the years, I've come to realize that three factors can put a serious damper on whether we have happy, sustainable clinical careers: isolation, developing an injury, or getting...
I have always liked Howie Mandel. His sense of humor, his comedic laugh, and his trademark fist bump reflects his courageous way of dealing with a disease that hinders many people...
You are treating your six-month recare patient with the ultrasonic scaler. He has minimal inflammation and recession, and calculus deposits are moderate. You have scaled the anteriors...
Being called a mouth breather used to be a derogatory term used to describe someone who was, well, here's the Urban Dictionary definition: 1. Literally, someone who lacks enough...
Treating animals in the zoo environment is always fascinating. Few individuals, though, enter this domain and stick with it as long as Dr. John Scheels has. I met John in Milwaukee...
A recent headline from a dental journal intrigued me, and I couldn't help but read further. The title said, "3 reasons why a Modern Millennial Hygienist does NOT perio chart."...
We have faced this issue in practice too many times to count. Your patient has a hip or knee replacement, and the orthopedic surgeon recommends antibiotic premedication for life...
WITH EVERY PASSING year, dentistry edges away from any Norman Rockwell portrait of a Caucasian dental hygienist showing a Caucasian child how to brush, demonstrating with an oversized...