I have seven pals that I would like for you to meet. If you're like me and get around the block, as they say, you may have met them already. Indeed, there's a chance your friendship with the seven RDH columnists precedes mine. But in the 15-something years that I've known some of them, I know with absolute certainty that both of us have never seen these pals under one roof at the same time.
In July, that all changes. Join me in hanging out with these seven buddies at the RDH Under One Roof conference. RDH is hosting the conference July 27-28 in Denver. If you want to know more about it, there's a related advertisement on pages 90-91 in this issue.
I'm excited about seeing my pals again. Oh, "pals" may indicate Trouble with a capital T to you. I've had dinner, for example, with Anne Guignon and Dianne Glasscoe within the last year. To claim we just talked about dental hygiene would be stretching it a bit. But at least the waiters didn't have to sweep up broken glass and furniture afterwards.
If it had just been Anne, though, who knows? She's a feisty Texas, uh, lady. (I was going to say gal, but I don't want to make the same mistake doctors make. When doctors say it, it implies ownership of employees; when I say feisty Texas gal about Anne, I mean, "Incoming! ... Duck! ... Another missile on the loose!") The feisty Texas gal and this good ol' boy from Oklahoma make each other laugh. Not that Dianne puts the Methodist preachers I've known to shame. She possesses the delightful wit that is a trait of the long-time residents of the Carolinas and Virginia. Somewhere, there are photographs of Anne and her school cap, as well as Dianne in a square-dancing outfit. I think both should be on display at RDH Under One Roof, don't you?
It's been too long since I've seen Chris Miller. When I last saw him, I think the family photos in my wallet consisted of just two offspring. Since then, my wife and I have added a daughter who's now sighing about all the "weird" stuff encountered in seventh grade. On the other hand, I've only met Kathleen Adams once. Our sole encounter was at the California Dental Hygienists' Association meeting in 2000, and the discussion led to the development of her "Your Money" column.
Kristine Hodsdon was judged to be a home run at the recent Cosmetic Dentistry 2001 conference in Las Vegas. Hodsdon was one of three hygienists who spoke at the two-day meeting. But, as the name of the meeting implies, doctors interested in elective cosmetic services were motivated to attend. Since the name of her RDH column is "Esthetic Hygiene," it should be no surprise that she captivated her audience. But we were delighted by the doctors who gave her high marks for her presentation. Kristine, by the way, is the "Yankee" of the bunch, hailing from New Hampshire. I don't even know if they say "pals" up there, but we consider her to be a good one.
Dr. Joen Haring is the veteran of the current generation of RDH columnists, starting "Case Study" in 1989. She is the only dentist who has ever written a monthly column for the magazine. Her descriptions of oral pathology cases remain very educational to RDH readers. Our paths have crossed twice (in Chicago and Los Angeles), and each time I was reminded of how fortunate dental hygiene is to have her as a friend.
The seventh pal, of course, is Trisha O'Hehir. It's hard to imagine RDH without the "Periodontics" column, and it's even harder to imagine life without her friendship. She is a true inspiration for many of the good things that happen with RDH. Our paths have crossed numerous times in recent years, and the brainstorming we do over the telephone always leads to amazing results. If for no other reason, you've got to come to Denver to meet Trisha.
These pals of mine, of course, have a professional reputation to maintain. It's not all fun and games at RDH. Each month, the columnists work hard at delivering solid information for readers. For RDH Under One Roof, they have developed some excellent courses (again, refer to the advertisement for more details).
Nevertheless, I know them as friends first. I also believe very strongly in the benefits of networking. With that in mind, we are hosting a reception on July 27 where you can interact with all seven of my pals. I hope you'll join us. It's hard to believe that we're all finally going to be under one roof.
Editor Mark Hartley can be contacted at [email protected].
