Shadow Opportunity in Dallas?

[DrillFillSeal]

I am looking for a Dentist to shadow in the Dallas Area. I would even consider Fort Worth. I work M-F and I am looking to shadow on Saturdays, which has made my search all the more difficult. I have tried visiting offices in person and sending requests via email, all to no avail. Does anybody know a dentist or have a recommendation for me?? Thanks.

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[CSI Dentist]

I shadow three dentists in Dallas, on Saturdays only....

I would call on the phone, tell them you want to shadow bc u are applying to dental school, and you can only do it on weekends, i would ask for their hrs first....

e-mailing and mailing stuff to them does not work bc these ppl don't have time to answer you back, or they don't take it seriously. But calling and asking directly worked for me.

Good luck. p.s. where in Dallas do u live?

 

[DrillFillSeal]

Thanks for the advice. I am actually located near Baylor and work near southwestern med school. How did you find your dentist to shadow, phonebook? I tried online and went driving around. I ended up with nothing. Any dentists you can recommend?

 

[CSI Dentist]

one of them is my regular dentist and I asked her if I could shadow her for a while... the other one I googled and found their phone number, called and asked if I could shadow...

They are usually nice... they don't mind it too much, if you tell them that you need some experience observing dental procedures. I don't have anyone I can recommend, but I do recommend you googling dentists in your area and giving them a call.

So you drove around, went in and asked and they flat out told u no u can't shadow?? Is that what you are saying?

 

[DrillFillSeal]

No no. I looked online and found a few open on Saturday, but when I went to the office they were closed! Maybe they need to update their website, there were no scheduled patients, or they were on vacation. I am not a native Dallasite so maybe I just need to broaden my search range from downtown out to some suburbs. Thanks for motivating me! I was using the no phone call, only in person approach. Maybe I will have better luck this time around. Thanks again.

 

[CSI Dentist]

u got me worried for a second there, usually they feel flattered that you want to shadow them.. seriously.

Well dentists that I shadow on Saturdays usually close if they don't have any appts... so maybe u just went there at a bad time... but yeah.. calling ahead of time helps.

 

[DrillFillSeal]

I feel better already. Did you stand around and watch or do some dentists let you assist?

 

[CSI Dentist]

depends on a dentist.... my personal dentist lets me assist sometimes, if it is not too bloody.... not that I mind, but for safety purposes, but another dentist, who is a periodontist just lets me watch.

U should ask them what you should wear. Like some dentists want you to wear scrubs, and kind of blend in with the crew, and some want you to be dressed up and just observe.

I like when I get to assist.... then you get to see better.

 

[shawn_wac]

This is an old thread... I hope you found someone by now... but if not, here are a couple of suggestions:

Texas Dental Association Mission of Mercy - www.TDA.org - Next one is in Houston (2007). I actually assisted a dentist for several hours in fillings and several major extractions… meth mouth, exposed roots, etc….

Here are some clinics around Dallas. I was going to vol here, but have been busy. My friend did a few of these and one time was actually mistaken for a doctor at one. They left her with a patient for care and etc… too funny. Anyway, she got tons of experience because there is little liability involved with these people. I know... I know... but really, they are just so happy you want to help them that you get more experience than with an office…She did extractions and everything in these clinics.

http://www.cdm-hope.org/chs/index.htm
http://www.dallas-cms.org/ss5/clinics.html

I also did work at Baylor. I volunteered there and met a lot of people. Look on Baylor’s website for contact info. Good luck. See you there.

 

[Anvitha]

I am looking for shadowing dentist in dallas area.I tried some clinics through phone but did not hear back from them.can any one recommend me any dentist or any suggestions as how can i approach a dentist for shadowing?