Manual Dexterity?

[Pelotari]

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Hi,

Just curious, what do you do to obtain decent manual dexterity to get into Dental School? Is manual dexterity something that people really think about and work on 👍 or is it not that important 👎 and thus folks concentrate on DAT scores and GPAs?

Anything out there other than the standard answers of "jewelry-making", "pottery", or "model airplanes"?

Thanks!

 

[r0entgen]

Hi,

Just curious, what do you do to obtain decent manual dexterity to get into Dental School? Is manual dexterity something that people really think about and work on 👍 or is it not that important 👎 and thus folks concentrate on DAT scores and GPAs?

Anything out there other than the standard answers of "jewelry-making", "pottery", or "model airplanes"?

Thanks!

i'm applying this year, and i didn't put anything under that section..it asked "do you wish to list any activities that show your manual dexterity" and i said "no"...

i think if you have a good gpa, dat scores, and a good reason for why you want to become a dentist, they don't really care if you have any activities...

 

[ElDienteLoco]

Pretty much everyone develops clinically acceptable hand skills in dental school. Some definitely get it quicker than others, but you will probably be fine.

I make jewelry and play a little piano, but I think it would be really funny if someone put "nasal excavation" under that AADSAS section...

 

[Dental Mom]

I'm practicing knitting....

 

[ISU_Steve]

Origami, tying fishing flies, macrame (or however it is you spell it), or find a dental lab and see if they will hire you (that's what I am doing).

 

[makwendo]

Oh come on, that's a skill that'll save you some money.....gettin all that gold from the nasal orifice.....least you won't have to buy any from the d'school!!

In all seriousness, manual dexterity is just another 'skill' that, although not required to the upteenth (that isn't a word!) degree, is something that would be helpful to have. Try to imagine someone who can;t hold a pencil trying to work on some clay with a high speed piece! I wouldn't get some manual dexterity skills just so I could put them on my app, instead, work on your DAT and GPA....MUCH MUCH more important. But if model airplane building or clarinet is a forte, by all means, it'll make you stand out that much more....

 

[Dental Mom]

.............I wouldn't get some manual dexterity skills just so I could put them on my app, instead, work on your DAT and GPA....MUCH MUCH more important. But if model airplane building or clarinet is a forte, by all means, it'll make you stand out that much more....

I agree 100% 😉

 

[aggie-master]

I used to be an electronics technician and we would repair monitors and other stuff by finding the component on the board that was damaged and then taking it out and replacing it with a new part. A lot of the components were tiny and in hard to reach places so I think it took some skill to be able to get your hot soldering iron in there to take a part out without damaging other components on the board.

Is that a decent example for my application or am I reaching with that?

soldering iron like i worked with

board example

 

[drhobie7]

Paint. Paint very small, very detailed pictures. It'll work on your hands and esthetic skills simultaneously.

 

[aphistis]

Paint. Paint very small, very detailed pictures. It'll work on your hands and esthetic skills simultaneously.

There are very, very few outside activities that let you practice the kind of precision psychomotor skills you'll use in dentistry. The only examples I've seen in this thread are the electronics tech work, and maybe the fine-detail painting. The rest just doesn't let you practice the degree of precision you need.

 

[Smooth Operater]

I am going to take a Candian DAT this fall which requires me to carve a soap into the proposed design. Can I list it down as one of activities that I have done to improve my manual dexertity since I have already practiced 40+ soaps and felt pretty comfortable working with small things.

 

[coolslugs]

I used to love playing with legos when I was younger...

 

[jay228]

I am going to take a Candian DAT this fall which requires me to carve a soap into the proposed design. Can I list it down as one of activities that I have done to improve my manual dexertity since I have already practiced 40+ soaps and felt pretty comfortable working with small things.

no jizzmaster, the schools toss out your application if you list it in there... /sarcasm

 

[hoz553]

There are very, very few outside activities that let you practice the kind of precision psychomotor skills you'll use in dentistry. The only examples I've seen in this thread are the electronics tech work, and maybe the fine-detail painting. The rest just doesn't let you practice the degree of precision you need.

I agree that electronics tech is a good example especially when handling dental handpieces. I also believe that sewing skills will help with suturing after extractions, and pottery will help with finishing/cleaning up the impressions.
Putting together model airplanes helps with putting together the XCP but that is very easy to put together anyways.
Setting up the anesthetic needle reminds me of loading a bullet into a rifle.


I play the piano constantly and find no use of that skill so far in the dental clinic I work. One thing I noticed is you need to have a very strong grip and hand squeeze. That photac dispenser requires some godly strength to squeeze it out.

 

[aphistis]

I agree that electronics tech is a good example especially when handling dental handpieces. I also believe that sewing skills will help with suturing after extractions, and pottery will help with finishing/cleaning up the impressions.
Putting together model airplanes helps with putting together the XCP but that is very easy to put together anyways.
Setting up the anesthetic needle reminds me of loading a bullet into a rifle.


I play the piano constantly and find no use of that skill so far in the dental clinic I work. One thing I noticed is you need to have a very strong grip and hand squeeze. That photac dispenser requires some godly strength to squeeze it out.

Sutures, impressions, & XCP's are all easy compared to the actual dentistry. If somebody can't master those three, they've got bigger problems.

 

[IcemanDDS]

Well I think anything skilled that you do with your hands just puts you that much closer to being able to perform in clinical. You know, like video games, guitar, and filling in answer bubbles on scantrons

 

[FCIllini]

Does changing baby diapers count??

 

[IcemanDDS]

Does changing baby diapers count??

I'll feel bad for you if you ever work on a patient that in any way resembles changing a baby's diaper

 

[Demeter]

Your DAT scores and GPA carry the most weight during the application process. It would be to your benefit if you could give examples of your proficiency using your hands. I am avid flyfisherman and tie my own flies.
You work in a confined space with threads that easily break under tension. It is a detailed and meticulous art.
I can't honestly say my hobby has greatly helped me during dental school, but it gave me an good answer duing the interview. You should be able to figure out if you possess hand skills prior to going through dental school. If you have massive club fingers that shake when you hold an instrument , dental school probably isn't for you.
In every class there will be a minority of students who have hand skills comparable to Da'Vinci, and everything they touch comes out perfect in a short amount of time. The majority of people will have to work at it. They will learn by making mistakes and through practice become profienct in their hand skills. At the other end of the spectrum are the people who have zero hand skill ability, constantly have problems with their work and realize they have chosen the wrong profession, usually after accruing a large debt in school loans. As long as you can make sure you don't fall into this group you should be fine. The question about hand skills will probably be asked during your interview.

 

[toofache32]

My hand skills generally involve only the left hand.

 

[JavadiCavity]

I agree with Bill. After messing with a handpiece for two weeks in the simlab cutting preps on molars, I agree that being able to paint small details with a fine tipped paintbrush or using the soldering iron would be some of the activities most like working with a handpiece. You are cutting preps that are 1mm wide and 1.5mm deep. Once that hi-speed handpiece starts spinning 450,000 rpm, cutting through the typodonts we are using is liking slicing a hot knife through butter. Too much pressure or an unsteady hand and you can do ALOT of damage really quickly.

 

[hawk52]

I agree with Bill. After messing with a handpiece for two weeks in the simlab cutting preps on molars, I agree that being able to paint small details with a fine tipped paintbrush or using the soldering iron would be some of the activities most like working with a handpiece. You are cutting preps that are 1mm wide and 1.5mm deep. Once that hi-speed handpiece starts spinning 450,000 rpm, cutting through the typodonts we are using is liking slicing a hot knife through butter. Too much pressure or an unsteady hand and you can do ALOT of damage really quickly.

I used to do brain surgeries on rats and open heart surgeries on dogs for research in two different labs. So i think that gave me some manual dexterity, which i highlighted in my ps.

 

[JavadiCavity]

I used to do brain surgeries on rats and open heart surgeries on dogs for research in two different labs. So i think that gave me some manual dexterity, which i highlighted in my ps.

Nope, only painting and electronics bud. Comparatively, brain and heart surgery are a walk in the park.

 

[drhobie7]

I used to do brain surgeries on rats and open heart surgeries on dogs.

I love this. Use this as a pickup line at bars...."Hi there, I'm a rodent neurosurgeon AND a canine cardiothoracic surgeon. Wanna come home with me?"

You make it sound like you were doing gamma knife ablations and quadruple bypasses!

 

[paletwilight]

I don't know if anybody here has done any kind of metalwork, but I took a jewelry fabrication class that actually involved a lot of the skills I observed in my shadowing experience. We actually used a flexible shaft that is pretty much a less sanitary version of a dental handpiece. It's powered by foot and everything. Pretty interesting stuff.