Repetitive nature of work

[freedyx3]

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Hi all!

One issue I would like to get your opinions on is dealing with the potential problem of repetition. I think for me this is the only problem that I can foresee in a career in dentistry.

People keep saying that after many years of practice, a dentist will become bored of doing the same procedures over and over, and become very intellectually unsatisfied. These people include both the two dentists I've visited. One of them straight out told me that he tired of being a dentist after 20 years, and that its better to go into medicine. The other one told me that if he could do it over again he would never have been a dentist. Such words coming from the source was very unsettling.

To tell you the truth I am VERY SCARED of the potential of the repetition totally getting to me after a few years. So what do you guys think about this potential problem, especially if you have already been practicing for a few years.

Thanks for any input.

 

[Supernumerary]

I have also wondered about this, but I think any career is going to get repetitive after a while. I bet that sometimes even Tiger Woods wakes up in the morning and thinks "Dude, golf again?!" It's true that dentists only perform a limited number of procedures, but medical surgeons also have a fairly limited repertoire. Physician's offices are filled with case after case of the same old diagnosis and prescription. I will grant that physicians in emergency medicine or similar high adrenaline specialties probably see a little more variety than most health care providers - but my guess is that they have their bouts of monotony too.

If you are worried about boredom, maybe you could do a joint PhD program so you could do research or academics if you needed more stimulation. Also, remember that as a dentist you will likely have time and money to pursue other interests outside of your career, a luxury that many fields do not provide. 😉

Though I would like to hear Dr. Jeff's opinion on the matter. 🙂

 

[lloydchristmas]

freedyx:

Yes, monotony can be a problem, but let's face it... it's a problem only in the eye of the beholder. I'm an ER nurse, and it's INCREDIBLY monotonous for me (same ol' MVA, drug overdose, cough, sneeze, drippy crotch, etc).

I would be more concerned with lifestyle than monotony of the procedures. Do you want to go to med school and find yourself on call 24/7? Or do you want to be an equally respected DDS with regular office hours under your control, not the control of a hospital administration or your patients ailments?

I wanted to go to med school (and am still thinking about it). But, the more I think of dentistry, the more appealing it becomes. Those people that you talked to that said they'd not be dentists again may have many different reasons behind their opinion. Sure, it probably gets boring (but so does cardiovascular surgery). If you're concerned with the "intellectual challenge" not being there, don't be. You can make it an intellectual challenge if you want to. Dentistry, along with other "medical" specialties, provide an infinite field of information, because we learn something new about it all the time. Fact is, we'll never know all there is to know about healthy teeth and gums, etc. So, if you want the intellectual challenge to be there, it will be there.

Think about how much you'll enjoy practicing dentistry, sure. But, also think about how much you'll enjoy the life outside of your career.

Good luck... I know it's a stressful decision to make. But, relax, make up your mind, and dive into it without looking back. Once you've started whatever you've decided, don't let anyone (including yourself) tell you you made the wrong decision. You made the right decision... period.

 

[freedyx3]

Wow all your comments are very inspiring and great.

What I am really scared of is if 15 years down the road I will realized that my job is completely unsatisfying and monotomous. I don' t think that would happen but if its happened to my dentist it can def happen to me as well.

I guess I'm just getting cold feet because I'm kind of at a fork in the road of life right now. I can take either of two path, BUT once I decide to go down one path that it. I just want to make sure I take the path that best suits me (but of course I won't know if I have made the right choice until I experience it) I guess that's the catch.😡

 

[lloydchristmas]

You and I face a similar dilemma. I have heard a lot more doctors say they wouldn't suggest entering medicine than I have dentists saying not to enter dentistry. And, the dentists that I know all seem very happy to me.

That's enough for me, anyway.

 

[csani]

I have been in the same boat regarding this concern. I think that you will have to dig deep to find the a satisfactory answer to your question. The key may largely be dependent on how you motivate yourself.

Thanks to specialization, just about any job is repetitious at some level. The professionals that I know who enjoy their jobs seem to have one thing in common: they are good at creating/finding aspects of their job that is inherently interesting to them. In a way, you need to challenge yourself to improve. I love working with my hands, so the technical side of the profession will most likely be appealing to me at a fundamental level. Late in one's career, you can challenge yourself to get better results, become more efficient, etc. There will always be new procedures to master as well, therefore the emphasis on life-long learning. It seems to me that managing the repetitious nature of the technical aspects will be relatively easy with some effort -- and intellectual curiosity juice!!

Moreover -- and more importantly, I think -- the people interaction and business management aspects of the job seem to be either a pleasure or nightmare depending on one's approach to the situation. These aspects of the profession, while not technical, will probably impact satisfaction level to a greater degree than the technical ones.
It's cliche, but I really believe that what you do with what you have can make you happy, not what is handed over. Once the learning curve levels off, you can alway find a new challenge if you need one.

 

[djsux]

Mad props to those posting above - definitely some good insight. As they say in the consulting world, "It depends." If you continue to preform the same procedures and keep your business model the same over a period of 20 years, I really couldn't anyone not being bored. However, as mentioned on the flip side, there are more and more general dentists taking on the niche of specialists by becoming invisalign certified, performing root canals, extracting wisdom teeth, etc. by taking courses and honing their dental skills.

In addition to the lifelong learning aspect, as csani mentioned, there is the whole business aspect as well. You can continue to grow your practice, establish an office model that you can eventually license out, and turn your private dental clinic into a thriving corporation. Or reduce your hours at your clinic and work on your golf game.

Or after becoming bored in general practice (and after 20 years, you should have accumulated a huge nest egg), you can return to the world of academia to school all those aspiring pre-dents who are pondering the same questions that we are asking right now.

As for me, besides being long winded, look forward to acquiring new skills both from a dental and business standpoint and am looking to heading into academia (part-time) after a few years of private practice.

Hook it up - UTHSCSA 2007

 

[zazzookode]

Monotony is a fact of life. It will happen to anyone regardless of their field of work. Anyone who says otherwise is full of it. And this raises a good point. People have gotten so spoiled in this country. They expect to love what they do all the time. In every other part of the world, work is still just that WORK. It's not supposed to be fun. You work to provide for your family; to enable you to live. It's unfortunate that most people applying to medical and dental school never held down a full time job. If you did, you would appreciate the medical fields so much more. You are luck if you can love even 50% of your job.

You don't think doctors do repetitive work? Their life is not NBC's ER. Family practice docs do roughly the same routine. General Surgeons perform roughly the same procedures. Dermatologists prescribe creams and other acne medicine. etc. Any job becomes repetitve regardless of how glamorous it is. Actors memorize scripts and live in trailors most of the year. Rock starts are usually recording, practicing or traveling 80% of the time. The times you see them at public parties or making public appearances is rare for them. Everything becomes a routine after a while.

The worst thing you could do is become a physician over becoming a dentist because of routine. You will just find out that medicine and other fields involve routine as well. You will not only endure the routine of your job. You will also endure the routine of dealing with managed care and collections the rest of your life too. And as a physician, you will become sued. It's just a fact of being a doctor. It's routine that patients will sue your insurance company regardless if they like your or the type of job you have done. This is a litigous society and people are finding out that suing doctors is routine and easy. So realistically, you will have to deal with being sued at least once as a physician.

The way I look at it is if I'm going to work and be in a routine for a living, I might as well get paid for it. And I might as well have the easiest work schedule possible. How many jobs allow one to work 4 days, 30 hours per week and still earn 200K per year.

Why do you think every doctor I speak to tells me to go into dentistry. The only people who think medicine is better than dentistry are pre-meds, because they have no clue as to what being a doctor is really like. Talk to any 4th year med student on up and they will tell you how medicine has so much regulation and bureacracy associated with it, that it's not even fun any longer.

 

[booshwa]

Okay, well I haven't read everyone's post entirely, so I apologize if I'm repeating stuff that has already been said....

I've been working for 3 years doing very repetitive stuff, and I can attest that it is very difficult. I feel like I'm intellectually starved, and it doesn't make for a enjoyable job.

With regards to dentistry, or any field in medicine, there will be very repetitive tasks. But every dentist I have talked to has not complained about their work being repetitive. The have all said that they love their job and don't have any regrets about it. One of the things I am looking forward to is a lifetime of learning. There have been huge changes in the field over the past few decades, and will be just as many in the future. I look forward to constantly learning new techniques, using new equipment, etc... and I think this will help alleviate the repetition.

 

[ItsGavinC]

Heh, the title of this topic is funny -- "Repetitive nature of work." When I saw that, all I could think was "yes it is, yes it is."

 

[Frank Cavitation]

I think it's probably not so bad if you were a GP and own your practice. You can arrange your schedule so that you have a good mix of procedures each day, and give all the boring scaling/prophy to the hygienist (that's why you pay them so much!). Also, by taking continuing-ed courses you will become familiar with new techniques and gain confidence to tackle more difficult cases.

By the way, even as a 2nd year student I'm starting to get tuned out of removable prostho; stuff like patient management, occlusal readjustment and diagnosis of denture discomfort are too much for me already. 🙂