dental opposition

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hawaiiguy24

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I’m wondering how many of you have faced opposition for choosing dentistry as your career. I just got my first dose of opposition last night when a friend of mine called me. She started critizing me for choosing dentistry and she told me she doesn’t respect dentists and that her respect for me has dropped. When I asked her why, her general sentiment was that all dentists are in it for the money. She kept telling me that she would rather see me doing medicine and that I would be good at making life-or-death decisions.

Her idea is that dentistry is a cop-out for me (my goal was medicine a couple of years ago but for many reasons, I’ve decided dentistry is better for me). She is a respiratory therapist and is married to an anesthesiologist (who, by the way, makes $400,000 yearly) so obviously medicine is a huge part of her life, but I didn’t think it was appropriate for her to tell me what I should do with my future or assume she knows what my talents and skills are.

I have made my decision and she will not sway me from dentistry; regardless I still find it somewhat disturbing that I received so much negativity from her.
 
My whole family wanted me to go into medicine. Long story short, I didn't get into med school, so I went to dental school. In the end, I'm happy it worked out that way. I certainly don't get as much respect as a physician, but you know what? I don't care. I don't live my life to get respect for what I do, so much as who I am.

As for the money, there's good money to be made in medicine and dentistry. If your friend's attitude is that ALL dentists are in it for the money, then perhaps you should lose respect for HER. That's called stereotyping... It's what the uninformed or biased do when lacking real information. For any reason that she gave for her opinion, the same can be said for medicine. Of the complaints, both physicians and dentists: recommend unnecessary treatment for profit, charge up the wazzoo for anything and everything, don't give breaks for those who can't afford it, and don't give a rat's ass for the patient. Now, for those of us who are rational, we know that the great majority of physicians and dentists care about their patients, do what is in their patients' bests interests, and get compensated fairly for the costs involved.
 
I recently got married this summer to a writer for a major TV show. All of my relatives assume we have lots of money (we don't but they assume we do). After my wedding my uncle said to me "You're still not going to go to dental school, are you?" Implying that since now that he thinks we have money I don't *need* to become a dentist.
 
It's too bad that your friend feels that way about dentistry, but her views represent the feelings of a growing number of people towards dentistry. I listened to Gordon Christensen at a conference and he talked about how public perception towards the dental profession has become increasingly more negative. Recently dentists have gone from near the top of "ethical professions" lists (near clergy members) towards the bottom (closer to used car salesman).

It's sad that the reputation of a great profession has been tarnished by the actions of unprofessional dentists.
 
NewMexDent said:
It's too bad that your friend feels that way about dentistry, but her views represent the feelings of a growing number of people towards dentistry. I listened to Gordon Christensen at a conference and he talked about how public perception towards the dental profession has become increasingly more negative. Recently dentists have gone from near the top of "ethical professions" lists (near clergy members) towards the bottom (closer to used car salesman).

It's sad that the reputation of a great profession has been tarnished by the actions of unprofessional dentists.
Click to expand...

Lmao, this has GOT to be some sort of sick joke.
 
Both of my brothers are in Medical school and they seem to think dental school is way easier and that me going to Dental school is a cop out. Direct quote, "How hard can dentistry be, you only learn about the mouth; we learn about the whole body." :laugh:
 
UNR.Grad said:
Both of my brothers are in Medical school and they seem to think dental school is way easier and that me going to Dental school is a cop out. Direct quote, "How hard can dentistry be, you only learn about the mouth; we learn about the whole body." :laugh:
Click to expand...

In true dentist "wannabe" fashion, my response to them would be, "Bite Me!"
 
UNR.Grad said:
Both of my brothers are in Medical school and they seem to think dental school is way easier and that me going to Dental school is a cop out. Direct quote, "How hard can dentistry be, you only learn about the mouth; we learn about the whole body." :laugh:
Click to expand...

Does this mean I can skip my gross anatomy final tommorow?
 
hawaiiguy24 said:
I’m wondering how many of you have faced opposition for choosing dentistry as your career. I just got my first dose of opposition last night when a friend of mine called me. She started critizing me for choosing dentistry and she told me she doesn’t respect dentists and that her respect for me has dropped. When I asked her why, her general sentiment was that all dentists are in it for the money. She kept telling me that she would rather see me doing medicine and that I would be good at making life-or-death decisions.

Her idea is that dentistry is a cop-out for me (my goal was medicine a couple of years ago but for many reasons, I’ve decided dentistry is better for me). She is a respiratory therapist and is married to an anesthesiologist (who, by the way, makes $400,000 yearly) so obviously medicine is a huge part of her life, but I didn’t think it was appropriate for her to tell me what I should do with my future or assume she knows what my talents and skills are.

I have made my decision and she will not sway me from dentistry; regardless I still find it somewhat disturbing that I received so much negativity from her.
Click to expand...

Why would you even care about what a friend says about your career choice? A good friend is supposed to be supportive and helpful, not putting you down for choosing a perfectly reasonable and respectable profession. If I were you I would have cut her off short in the middle and ended the conversation there and then.
 
At first, my parents were the ones who would give me a hard time. They wanted me to go to med school and for a couple of years I actually psyched myself out into thinking that that was what I wanted to do. But after immersing myself in the field, I decided it wasn't for me. When I explained that to my parents they loosened up and are behind me 100%.

Then the opposition shifted to other family members asking me why I chose dentistry and not medicine. One of my uncles told me that medicine was better and I told him that he should have became a doctor if that was the case lol. I feel that I am ultimately going to be the one that changes their perceptions of dentistry. Where my parents are from, dentistry is very rare so the concept is new to many.
 
UNR.Grad said:
Both of my brothers are in Medical school and they seem to think dental school is way easier and that me going to Dental school is a cop out. Direct quote, "How hard can dentistry be, you only learn about the mouth; we learn about the whole body." :laugh:
Click to expand...

I come from a huge family of doctors (extended family included). (And when I say doctors, I mean that they're all in medicine. You know, since dentists are doctors also. I thought I'd clarify.) They were the ones who got me hooked on dentistry in the first place. They all say it's a great profession and better than medicine because you work less, don't deal with the insurance etc, and make a similar chunk of money while still getting the same satisfaction of helping out other people. So, I guess it's not everyone who looks down dentistry.
 
NewMexDent said:
It's sad that the reputation of a great profession has been tarnished by the actions of unprofessional dentists.
Click to expand...

I would hope that the reputation comes more from cheap people and crappy insurances than bad dentists. I think if people really knew what their insurance covered (or doesn't cover) they wouldn't blame dentists.
 
johntara04 said:
I would hope that the reputation comes more from cheap people and crappy insurances than bad dentists. I think if people really knew what their insurance covered (or doesn't cover) they wouldn't blame dentists.
Click to expand...

That may be true, but there is some seriouslly unprofessional things going on out there - and there are tons of lawsuits to prove it. Dentistry is increasingly moving towards more cosmetic/elective work - in fact, 50% of dentistry is elective. In the past you went to the dentist when you had a problem and were in pain and the dentist alleviated it. Now you go to the dentist to improve your smile. Maybe this change has made some dentists more interested in profits than in patient care. But, who knows? The bottom line is that there are bad, unethical dentists out there and it has really hurt the profession.
 
armorshell said:
I call shenanigans on that statistic.
Click to expand...

You're right, I shouldn't throw numbers around without knowing the direct source but this is what Gordon Christensen said at the Washington State Dental Convention and I would say he knows his stuff.
 
NewMexDent said:
You're right, I shouldn't throw numbers around without knowing the direct source but this is what Gordon Christensen said at the Washington State Dental Convention and I would say he knows his stuff.
Click to expand...

I don't care who said it, it doesn't even come close to making a shred of sense. You can tell them armorshell said it 😀
 
armorshell said:
I don't care who said it, it doesn't even come close to making a shred of sense. You can tell them armorshell said it 😀
Click to expand...

How does it not make sense? In terms of revunue, elective procedures could come close to 50%. Either way, the numbers aren't important. If it pleases you I will retract my statement. It doesn't change the fact that elective procedures are increasing in number.
 
Also, are we all clear on who Gordon Christensen is? He is to dentistry what Michael Jordan is to basketball. He is a pretty reliable source.
 
Who cares what people say? As long as you like dentistry, that's all it matters.
 
hawaiiguy24 said:
... she told me she doesn't respect dentists and that her respect for me has dropped.
Click to expand...

I am assuming your friend does not visit the dentist regularly, since she doesn't respect them. I bet when your friend's teeth start to rot a couple of years from now, and her mouth is begins to smell like @$$ mixed with all sorts of yummy bacteria, then she will begin to "respect" dentists.
 
Family is very supportive. When I told my friends it was a mixture of "you want to look in mouths all day?!" and "did you know that dentists have the highest suicide rate?" but overall very positive reactions.
 
some doctors are really snooty..iv even had GI doc say why do u want to look in someones mouth? i am sorry but id rather look there than up someone's ass!

You're friend needs to realize why u would like to be a dentist and respect you for making a responsible decision and standing up for yourself. Poor friend, seems like shes the one whos a doc for the money...*wonder why she married the anesthesiologist---*
 
NewMexDent said:
How does it not make sense? In terms of revunue, elective procedures could come close to 50%. Either way, the numbers aren't important. If it pleases you I will retract my statement. It doesn't change the fact that elective procedures are increasing in number.
Click to expand...

I think the only way this makes sense is if Gordon is counting a posterior composite an "esthetic" restoration.
 
Some great comments! Thanks for backin' me up!👍 I've talked to a number of people since my conversation and everyone seems to think she was way out of line... everyone else around me has a great deal of respect for dentists. Of course in the end, I don't really care what everyone else thinks (except my wife, who's opinion I value highly). I'm doing what I want to do... bollocks to the rest!
 
Khala Jaan said:
some doctors are really snooty..iv even had GI doc say why do u want to look in someones mouth? i am sorry but id rather look there than up someone's ass!

You're friend needs to realize why u would like to be a dentist and respect you for making a responsible decision and standing up for yourself. Poor friend, seems like shes the one whos a doc for the money...*wonder why she married the anesthesiologist---*
Click to expand...

I think some often misunderstood medical specialties and subspecialties from an outsider's point of view are:

Gastro
Urology
OB/GYN
Pediatric Urology
Colon & Rectal Surgery

Now, with the exception of OB/GYN, these are REALLY competitive to get into! Some might be surprised, but competition is fierce to do surgery on the rectum. They command the big bucks, too. Would you trust any less than the best to operate on you rectum?
 
Meatwad said:
I think some often misunderstood medical specialties and subspecialties from an outsider's point of view are:

Gastro
Urology
OB/GYN
Pediatric Urology
Colon & Rectal Surgery

Now, with the exception of OB/GYN, these are REALLY competitive to get into! Some might be surprised, but competition is fierce to do surgery on the rectum. They command the big bucks, too. Would you trust any less than the best to operate on you rectum?
Click to expand...

It appears that the real money in medicine lies in the out holes.
 
Meatwad said:
I think some often misunderstood medical specialties and subspecialties from an outsider's point of view are:

Gastro
Urology
OB/GYN
Pediatric Urology
Colon & Rectal Surgery

Now, with the exception of OB/GYN, these are REALLY competitive to get into! Some might be surprised, but competition is fierce to do surgery on the rectum. They command the big bucks, too. Would you trust any less than the best to operate on you rectum?
Click to expand...

Well said. I figure that these professions, along with dentistry, are expensive because the procedures are so technical and difficult. As for the people who say that dentists do not have to deal with insurances.. completely untrue. Dentists also have their share of lawsuits. I have worked in dental offices and I have seen it. In the end, its the insurance companies that are really greedy.. but you have to deal with them. There are so many complications with dentistry.. its no wonder that those who go into it only for the money end up unhappy. They still have to deal with a lot of crap in order to get paid.

Anyway, good luck, OP. Don't let them get you down!!
 
Some ppl just hold a very WRONG view of dentistry being like you said a 'cop out' for pre-meds... I guess it is for some but a lot of pre-dents around me are really serious about it... But yea I'd say there's no denying that 'pre-meds' get more prestige so to say... I have a really good GPA but my mind's been set on dentistry (i came to college as pre-dentistry) but I hear "Why are you pre-dent instead of pre-med? You can totally get into med school with your grades" all the time..
However I can't deny that ppl do "drop out" of pre-med into pre-dent cause i've seen a lot of ppl do it... but they usually "drop out" to pre-pharm before they graduate or go onto masters...
 
armorshell said:
Does this mean I can skip my gross anatomy final tommorow?
Click to expand...

You still have to go, but you pass as long as you can correctly identify the mouth.

STUDY HARD, there are multiple orifices in the head! You only get credit for picking the right one!
 
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