My last and final patient

One the last day of clinic I had one competency to finish and that was an AP. I was looking forward to finishing out all my competencies this semester and having a smooth last clinic session. I called my patient the day before and right before the appointment started to confirm if he would be coming in. Unfortunately he did not answer and failed to show up. However I did not let this bad news defeat me. I went to the dental hygiene clinic and helped a classmate out who was scheduled with two patients that day.

I must admit I was a little anxious about taking this patient because I did not have the time to go over his medical history or look at his chart prior to the clinic session. But I worked with the patient and faculty to try and get as much as I could done in that appointment. We did not get started until about three o'clock but I was still pretty positive we could at least start the prophy today. Boy was I wrong. This patient had an extensive medical history. Much of which I had never encountered with a previous patient. However the patient was very cooperative and patient with me.

When it was time to get his dental exam I was explaining the significant appearances in his medical history. I was asked why this patient was taking a specific medication and assumed it was for one of the conditions he had. When I gave my answer I was asked to explain what that condition was. My mind went blank. i honestly did not know. Therefore I explained to the faculty I was unsure. I was assigned by the faculty to look it up and report back to them.

I was thinking to myself, "I really do not need another assignment right now". However that night something the faculty mentioned became really clear to me. He wanted to know if I had asked my patient about the condition. And my answer was no. Later in the appointment I found out my patient knew exactly what his condition was and could tell me a lot about it. This is when I found the lesson in this assignment. One valuable lesson I learned is that faculty are not here to spoon feed you information but to guide you to recognize what the answers are. In addition I learned that many patient know plenty of information on the conditions from which they are suffering and medications that are taking. I have had patients in the past that were clueless about their medications and it was easy for me to assume that about this patient. This has taught me that not only can I educate my patients but they can educate me as well.

Rotation....Perio

Every time I have presented for rotation in the Grad Perio clinic it has been a wonderful experience. The staff are very helpful with briefing you on procedures before you approach the resident you will be assisting. They also help in teaching you how to set-up and clean-up which saves time the next time you happen to be in that clinic. Unfortunately I have not had the opportunity to assist with any perio surgeries. Most of the patients I helped out with had just been for initial therapy or were receiving non-surgical scaling and root planing. Working with different residents was interesting and a good learning experience.

On this rotation I had the opportunity to meet two people who were very helpful and gave me great advice. The first was the hygienist that worked in the perio clinic. She was very insightful about her career as a hygienist and told me how rewarding it can be. We both decided that the sickle was our favorite instrument. She gave me the motivation to push through some of the long days I have encountered while being a student.

Another person I met was a patient here at the school. She explained that she used to work as a dental technician while in the army. Her job duties included assisting the dentist, mostly by filling restoration on preps he had created. I was very surprised when she explained she had no formal training in the field of dentistry. However she was very insightful about becoming a contractor and working for the government as an option after I graduate. She currently holds a human resources position for the government. She gave me her card and even offered to take a look at my resume. I was very pleased to gain this network with the patient and plan to keep in touch with her in the future about job ventures upon graduation.

Overall every occasion in perio has been a learning experience. The residents are very helpful at explaining the rationale for certain procedures and getting you to understand information without just feeding it to you. they even introduced me to some 3-D imaging that is used for implant preparation. It made me feel good to know they are taking the time to invest in our education. I had a great time and look forward to working in this department again.

Ethics....

Completing this interview was a very positive experience. My partner and I chose to interview a pediatric dentist named Dr. RA. He completed his doctorate of dental surgery at Howard University and did his pediatric residency at the Medical College if Virginia now VCU School of Dentistry. This practitioner was very open and willing to help us out with our project. I worked with Chelsea Aiken and she was a pleasant partner to work with. I feel as though we worked well together and put forth equal effort in completing this assignment.

Our scenario was specific to certain ethical decisions about suggesting certain products in the office. This particular practitioner had a very firm policy when suggesting products to his patients. he explained he would never introduce a product to his patient if it was not going to be beneficial to them. He also made it a point to only recommend products he was familiar with either by personal experience or through research. The one value he held most important was treating his patients like his own children or family, even if it meant paying for a product for one of his patients.

In my opinion Dr. RA was very genuine with his responses and I agreed with the points he made. He practiced the value of beneficence by making an obligation that benefits others. The conversation we had in class after the all of the presentations were very thought provoking. Many clinician make unethical decisions everyday without any consequences. It is very important to consider is those risk are with the outsomes that may come as a result.