Scope of practice?

[pvdude]

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Alright I am new to the dental game, but I was under the impression that gp fill cavities, pull teeth, etc, etc. I've read on here about people talking about gps straightening teeth and doing surgery. So my question is, what is the scope of practice for a gp? Can they do anything that they are comfortable and able to do?

 

[DoctreDrey]

according to the GPs i've shadowed they are licensed to do almost anything the specialists can, with the exception of a few oral surgery procedures and others (GPs can't apply general anesthesia). but most GPs dont have the right staff or equipment to, let's say, gives braces to someone. And if they did, they would still be held to the same standards as the specialists. Cost and time is also a huge factor. An endodontist may be able perform a root canal on someone in 20 min whereas a GP may take 1 hour or long, simply bc he/she is out of practice and/or does not have all of the best equipment (the specialists usually charge a bit more too). So from a business standpoint, most GPs stick to doing crowns, fillings, cleanings etc.

 

[the toothfairy]

according to the GPs i've shadowed they are licensed to do almost anything the specialists can, with the exception of a few oral surgery procedures and others (GPs can't apply general anesthesia). but most GPs dont have the right staff or equipment to, let's say, gives braces to someone. And if they did, they would still be held to the same standards as the specialists. Cost and time is also a huge factor. An endodontist may be able perform a root canal on someone in 20 min whereas a GP may take 1 hour or long, simply bc he/she is out of practice and/or does not have all of the best equipment (the specialists usually charge a bit more too). So from a business standpoint, most GPs stick to doing crowns, fillings, cleanings etc.

Hi just wanted to add to this. I am a GP and have been for 22 years. GP can apply general anesthesia if they have the permit and the equipment to do so. Yes it cost alot of money but if you want to do it you can. I do many root canals and I have had root canal specialists tell me that if they were to do the root canal they would not have done a better job. Its all in the instruments you have. I have many instruments that a root canal specialist use so I can do the root canals at their speed or even faster.
For my root canals I charge the same as a specialist. I do the same things I will be held to their standards so I charge accordingly. I also do braces and charge for them too. The most important issue to the patient is if they trust you, you can so whatever you want. It all depends on your confidence to do it. Also, as a GP you don't get bored in doing just one thing all day. You have variation. I also see alot of children. So you see being a GP is not so bad after all. I love what I do because I can do what I want! I am living proof of it!

If you have any questions in regards to what is involved in being a dentist you can email me at: [email protected]

 

[americanpierg]

As a GP, you can do almost anything a specialist can do. The only difference is that they have more experience (most of the time anyways) because they have gone through formal training for that specialty. They also receive referrals from GPs while you do not so they get more work and $$$ in that specific specialty.

A lot of it also has to do in these "codes" set forth by the ADA dealing with ethics. You cannot advertise your practice as anything that it is not. As a GP, you can do the work but you can not advertise yourself as an ortho or an endo. Also, if you are a board certified specialist, you can ony practice your speciallty and not do GP work in your practice (even if you disregard this, you will lose referrals from your GPs if they ever find out....referrals are everything for specialists so you don't want to destroy your networks). You may think these ethics "guidelines" set forth seem kind of unfair, but they make perfect sense. Would you, as a GP, want to refer your patients to an endo for difficult root canals only to have the endo steal these patients for all general procedures as well?

 

[bigstix808]

bf you finish dschool you'll have to do endo, ortho, pull out some teeth, do some dentures, cut and place crowns, and a good number of perio procedures...are you as good as a specialist at these procedures? maybe, but prob not. if you feel you are, or excelled in one area over another then go for it and offer that application to your patients. just keep up with you your CE (much like your specialist will be doing) and make for damn sure your work is as good as theirs (the specialist) in case *mess* hits the fan.

 

[doc toothache]

If we leave out prostho, perio, endo, os, ortho, pedo the only thing that's left is restorative. We might as well leave out prophies since, after all, hygienists certainly have more experience than gps.