As this school year comes to an end, I chatted with my classmates and we reflected on the strategies that were the most successful during our time in clinic.
Here’s what they said:
· Take a little bit of time every week to learn some DENTAL words in Spanish! If you learned how to speak Spanish in high school, that's great... until you need to tell your patient they need a filling but don't know the word "empaste." Even if you don't know how to speak full sentences, just having a few words up your sleeve will help the patient understand you so much better - "abre la boca" is open your mouth, "encÃas" is gums, "corona" is crown, etc. Quizlet has a ton of free flashcard sets, and it especially helps to read the medical history and consent forms in Spanish so you can associate certain words with each other (because the words on those forms tend to mostly have words that are important in dentistry anyways). You'll be surprised at how much you can pick up over time.
· It is so much better to over-explain to your patient than under-explain! Not only does a little "tell-show-do" help the patient (young or old) feel more at ease, but it also benefits both you and your assistant. When you take a second to explain the procedure to your patient, it gives you a chance to verbally run through things step-by-step before you get started. Also, if your assistant is new to clinic, it can be helpful for them to hear how you approach a certain procedure if it's something they've never seen before. And, if your assistant is a D4 and more experienced than you, they can remind you of any important steps you may be forgetting before you get started.
· Make a "Clinic" folder in Google Drive or in "the Cloud" ASAP. Every time you get an email with a flow chart for a certain procedure (diagnostic work-ups, how to put in an appointment request in AxiUm, etc), automatically export it as a PDF into that folder. If you find any helpful guides online, like a graphic of which anesthetic blocks numb what, save it into that folder. If you find some notes from an old lecture that end up being helpful before a new procedure, you're doing the next day, automatically save a copy to the folder. It makes it a lot easier to find and refer back to down the road!
-Courtney Favaloro, D3
· Arrive early to set up — if you’re on time you’re late, if you’re early then you’re on time, just something to live by
· Don’t rush during an appointment and don’t get rattled when things don’t go as planned. Take the time to make sure everything is done right before you work on getting faster.
· Lay out instruments in the order you work with them and keep a clean workspace. A sound workspace is a sound mind, a sound mind is a sound appointment.
-Casey Carr, D3
· Practice your hand skills and indirect vision on your off time.
· Moisturize your nose, because the n95 is very rough on your skin.
· Protect your hair with a cover, the bands on the n95 cause a lot of uneven hair breakage.
· Strengthen your core and back muscles through weight training or some other form of exercise, it’ll help you to maintain good posture during your procedure.
-Celeste Moreno, D3
· My best advice for clinic would be to prepare for each appointment beforehand. When you plan in advance and have a game plan in your head things tend to go a lot smoother. Make sure you have everything you need before the appointment begins. You have to be very flexible though at the same time and be ready for everything to completely change last minute. That’s dentistry for you!
-Ryker Ferraro, D3
· Always have a finger rest when working in the mouth.
· If a patient seems nervous thoroughly explain each step of the procedure to ease anxiety.
· Be cautious but not scared enough to make mistakes, you learn from them! If something goes wrong always be honest and focus more on the lesson than the mistake.
· Be prepared! Study your pts med/dent hx before they sit in your chair.
-Alex Talley, D3
· I’ve gotten in the habit of thanking the patients for coming in and showing some appreciation. They tend to smile and nod to it.
-Stephen Hernandez, D3
By Shwetha Ramanathan, Class of 2022