Shadowing Experiences

[trypmo]

Today, I went in for my first day of "shadowing" a dentist, so I thought I'd start a thread where we can all post related experiences.

The most fascinating procedure I saw -- and I saw it for the first time today, up close & personal -- was an extraction, specifically, #1. The Dr. was very patient with easing the tooth out and "feeling around" for which way "it wanted" to come out, and eventually the WHOLE THING just slipped on out in ONE PIECE, all the big ol' roots intact, and it was like the most amazing thing I had ever seen!!!

I also got to see 4 composite fillings: #28 OD, and #29-31 MOD. This Dr. doesn't do amalgam at all; he says that composites have become so far advanced that he prefers to use them in all cases.

He also put in a post to prep for a crown, I think it was on #6, using this ionomer cement stuff. Crown prep & temp next week, I think.

The only thing that drives me crazy so far is not being able to read the xrays yet! I look at them and I'm like hmm... teeth... yep... uh-huh... them's teeth all right... yep. I guess that will come in time.

The office was super busy, so there wasn't a lot of time for me to ask questions, but I got to do my first suctioning today (just two little *sloop*s, but still I'm jumping up & down inside) and I disinfected a chair (woohoo!!).

I can so totally see myself doing this as a career. I learned SO much in just 4 little hours today.

What about y'all other pre-dents?

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[busupshot83]

Last week, I finished up the last of a 72 hour dental assisting course I was taking to get some hands-on experience.

Things I learned:

- charting teeth
- taking alginate impressions
- taking x rays
- developing x rays
- instrument and tray setups
- 4 handed-dentistry
- other things I just cant think of

In all, it was a very educational experience. I got a 93% on the final exam, so I guess I retained something. I'll start shadowing my dentist soon.

pce,

bus.

 

[Dentalist]

trypmo,

awesome



busupshot83,

How did you like your dental assisting class? Would you recommend it to pre-dents?

Dentalist

 

[DDSdude]

Some of the procedures/cases I have seen over the last couple of months have been:

Bilateral sinus lift
Multiple implants
Impacted Extractions
Incision and drain
Bone augmentation
Fillings
Crowns
Root Canals
Immediate dentures
Partials
Flippers
Bridge
Veneers (spelling?)
Cerec 3 in all its glory

All of these procedures were done by a general dentist. It has been AWESOME to be a part of this.

 

[bryan45876]

Hey trypmo,

It seems like you already have a good general knowledge about dentistry. I'm planning on shadowing my first dentist in a month or so, and one of the things I'm concerned about is that I know NOTHING.

Did you do anything to prepare before observing?

-Bryan

 

[trypmo]

busupshot83: whoa; that's AWESOME! Now you're, like, licensed?? I wish I had thought to do that, but if I had, maybe I wouldn't have had the time and then would never have gotten going.


DDSdude: How many hours per week are you there? What's your favorite procedure so far?


bryan45876: I can't keep my eyes off any dental-related info, which is bad b/c I'm not doing what I'm supposed to be doing, but it has given me a little bit of general knowledge I guess. I'd say it's totally fine to go in knowing nothing, because I'm still so close to that point myself!!

 

[ryche22]

does working at an orthodontists office count as shadowing?
i thought this would be great experience.

ive been there for a month and a half and i have taken alginate and ESPE impressions, worked with indirect bonding, digitized ceph tracings, oral photography, and working in peoples mouths taking/putting on ties and wires. i will be bonding brackets on soon. also ive been doing lab work like pouring up models, making appliances, and trimming spilnts.

is this experience schools are looking for, or do they want shadowing of a more general nature?

thanks

late
rick

 

[DDSdude]

I have had the opportunity to become good friends with about 6 dentists in town. When they have a case they think I will like they give me a call. Overall I have observed/assisted for around 300+ hours now.

My favorite procedure so far has been...... that is hard to say. I really like surgeries, especially the sinus lift and implants. The great thing about being a general dentist is you have the opportunity of doing multiple "kinds" of cases/procedures each day or week. Keeping things exciting and challenging.

It was great to see one of the dentists go from a crown prep to a sinus lift, over to an immediate denture (extracted 20+ teeth) over to do some fillings, and then over to mill the permanent crown with a Cerec 3 (which takes all of 12 minutes to mill while the patient waits) all in a couple of hours.

Now this is not the norm. He has been practicing for over 35 years and has taken hundreds of hours in CE credits (including the Misch Institue), but it was great to see the different procedures he is doing as a general dentist.

 

[sxr71]

Originally posted by ryche22
does working at an orthodontists office count as shadowing?
i thought this would be great experience.

ive been there for a month and a half and i have taken alginate and ESPE impressions, worked with indirect bonding, digitized ceph tracings, oral photography, and working in peoples mouths taking/putting on ties and wires. i will be bonding brackets on soon. also ive been doing lab work like pouring up models, making appliances, and trimming spilnts.

is this experience schools are looking for, or do they want shadowing of a more general nature?

thanks

late
rick

They prefer general experience. I know that Ohio State's 20 hour shadowing requirement must be fulfilled at a general dentist's office. I remember that other schools seem to recommend a more general shadowing experience.

 

[busupshot83]

Originally posted by Dentalist
trypmo,

awesome



busupshot83,

How did you like your dental assisting class? Would you recommend it to pre-dents?

Dentalist

I learned so much! I would def. recommend it to others. Here's the school:

http://www.dats.net/

Unfortunately, there is only a select number of locations:

FL Bradenton
FL Clearwater
FL Delray Beach
FL Fort Myers
FL North Miami Beach
FL Orlando
FL Plantation
FL Temple Terrace
FL West Palm Beach
OH Centerville
OH Troy
PA Hatboro
PA McKees Rocks (Robinson Township)
PA Pittsburgh (North Suburban)
VA Fredericksburg
VA Manassas
VA Woodbridge

 

[busupshot83]

Originally posted by trypmo
busupshot83: whoa; that's AWESOME! Now you're, like, licensed?? I wish I had thought to do that, but if I had, maybe I wouldn't have had the time and then would never have gotten going.

Well licensure is a tricky subject, because you don't need to be licensed in Florida to work as a Dental Assistant. The rule is that after 3 (or is it 5?) months of on the job working, you can sit the licensure exam. That class did not liscense you, it was just training (I don't really care because I got what I wanted ). Nevertheless, it was a great experience.

pce,

bus.

 

[Bullfan16]

I am lucky enough to be in a family of many dentists. Among them is my father (general dentist, UIC '71). For 7 months (August-January) I assisted, observed, poured up models, created numberous bleaching trays, cut temporaries, bridges, etc. At first I really struggled with it all.....lots of frustration...it took a few months to get used to doing everything a certain way. Now I can pour up pretty decent models and have learned a TON! I learned how to assist with:

-Oral Surgery procedures
-Fillings, Sealants, Crown Preps, Bridge preps, etc (On a side note, although I am sure in dental school it will become easy, learning how to hold the powerful suction keeping the tongue out of the way, making sure you arent in the way and keeping your hand still is harder than it looks); My father is a big into amalgams especially on the occlusal surfaces, he says they hold up a lot better than composites
-As my father uses IV sedation (conscious sedation, ie drugs like versed, talwin, etc.) to treat nervous and handicapped patients I learned how to monitor vital signs, etc.
-Helped assist/and essentially clean a few chambers in some root canals. Identification of roots, etc. (he counts teeth 1-8 in quadrants which bothers his hygenists, assistants and receptionist who all know them based on 1-32 system)
-In the end I am very glad I had the chance to do this, as not only did I learn instrumentation, terminology, procedures, etc. I also learned how to deal with patients and the roles each dental employee plays in the office; I almost forgot to mention sterilization (I know its obvious but there is a lot of steps you have to follow after each patient)
-Learned how to concentrate in stressful situations

Ok well that wraps up this essay. If anyone gets the chance to, make sure to volunteer or work in a n office you will be glad you did


-

 

[trypmo]

So here's an experience I had last week shadowing.

The patient must've eaten like 9 cloves of garlic for his last meal, because I tell ya' what, when he opened up, I was truly shocked and appalled. So I'm thinking, DANG, if/when I get to be a dentist, is there a polite way to, like, suggest a tic-tac or some listerine or something??

The procedure done on this guy wasn't long, but if it was going to be a 2-hour long problematical extraction or something I don't know if I'd have been able to stand it. I mean, I can only hold my breath for so long.

Any thoughts?

 

[busupshot83]

I feel ya...

During that class I took, we had to take x-rays and floss one another. For some reason, I kept getting stuck with the one guy with stank-ass breath. Everytime I flossed him, plaque was flying everywhere... I used my dodge-ball reflexes to effectively dodge the incoming plaque. Big fun yo... big fun.