First day of shadowing!

[NDPitch]

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I've scheduled some shadowing with my dentist, who happens to be a Prosthodontist, and taught at BU (too bad I live in state, and probably won't be able to get in there). My first day was this morning. I plan on doing more shadowing with a general dentist, and maybe even some other specialities.

I expected it to be a little boring to be honest, but it was actually much more than I thought it would be. I got there early in the morning before anyone else was there. It was just him and I. He showed me around the entire office. He showed me his personal office, his lab, where people hang out on breaks, the procedure rooms, the equipment, etc.

He had me wear some of his scrubs, and I watched him do 2 fillings. His assistant showed me how they take x-rays and develop them. The dentist then gave me a crash course on how to read the x-rays.

Then I observed him do a crown preparation with 2 posts in the canals, and then a couple more x-rays.

Finally, the receptionist showed me their scheduling software, the billing, and how they keep everything straight.

I was surprised to see so much in only three hours. Up next week is extractions and more crown preparations. They even said that once I get more familiar with things, I can sit in the assistant's seat, and do a procedure with the dentist (what?!?! I hope I don't kill the patient...) She'd obviously be standing over my shoulder the whole time, though. Pretty cool.

Is this a pretty typical shadowing experience, or are some dentists just more involved than others? He was very good to pause and have me look at what he was doing, and explain it to me. He even said to me "We'll soon see whether or not you are good with your hands. I'll have you help me out in my lab". Hopefully that goes well, haha.

It was a good experience, can't wait for next week!

 

[flyingforever]

I've scheduled some shadowing with my dentist, who happens to be a Prosthodontist, and taught at BU (too bad I live in state, and probably won't be able to get in there). My first day was this morning. I plan on doing more shadowing with a general dentist, and maybe even some other specialities.

I expected it to be a little boring to be honest, but it was actually much more than I thought it would be. I got there early in the morning before anyone else was there. It was just him and I. He showed me around the entire office. He showed me his personal office, his lab, where people hang out on breaks, the procedure rooms, the equipment, etc.

He had me wear some of his scrubs, and I watched him do 2 fillings. His assistant showed me how they take x-rays and develop them. The dentist then gave me a crash course on how to read the x-rays.

Then I observed him do a crown preparation with 2 posts in the canals, and then a couple more x-rays.

Finally, the receptionist showed me their scheduling software, the billing, and how they keep everything straight.

I was surprised to see so much in only three hours. Up next week is extractions and more crown preparations. They even said that once I get more familiar with things, I can sit in the assistant's seat, and do a procedure with the dentist (what?!?! I hope I don't kill the patient...) She'd obviously be standing over my shoulder the whole time, though. Pretty cool.

Is this a pretty typical shadowing experience, or are some dentists just more involved than others? He was very good to pause and have me look at what he was doing, and explain it to me. He even said to me "We'll soon see whether or not you are good with your hands. I'll have you help me out in my lab". Hopefully that goes well, haha.

It was a good experience, can't wait for next week!

drop that "Pre-med"

 

[NDPitch]

drop that "Pre-med"

Done.

 

[DentalJedi]

It's great that you had a good first experience! And if you thought fillings were exciting that's definitely a good sign, just wait until you get to see some more advanced procedures!

As for whether this is a typical experience, it really varies by dentist. My first shadowing experience was actually really boring. It was a young dentist who had never had anyone shadow, so I basically just sat there and watched, having no idea what she was doing. The next dentist I shadowed explained each step as he was doing it and that made it a lot more interesting.

 

[SeattleRDH]

Sounds like you have a great opportunity to learn from this dentist! Don't be afraid to assist. It's really not that hard if the dentist is willing to work with you.

 

[HoustonDAT]

This is an ideal learning environment that not many pre-dents get the chance to experience. You should feel very appreciative of this opportunity. You seem to have been genuinely intrigued after your first dental experience, and the good news is that it only gets better. If you continue to show passion and dedication to the field, I'm sure this great educator will be more than willing to write you an excellent LOR.