I am Toothsome!

...in other words i'm simply awesome! so says the American Dental Association (ADA).

You can see original document here: ADA's Toothsome

Keeping busy

Not only am I carrying a 26 credit hour workload, I am also doing research and currently the Vice President for the Student National Dental Association (SNDA), among other extracurricular activities. Needless to say, I am keeping super busy.
Last week my organization gave the Freshmen a big welcome and sort of an induction into the organization - we distributed some awesome t-shirts with these logos:

We also had our first general body meeting which consisted of a Panel of Dental Specialists who gave some background on their particular fields, passed down advice for those looking to specialize and answered all the burning questions the student body had on the topic. That was a success!

While all this was happening I had a Microbiology exam that I had to study for, a Pathology quiz, along with Restorative Operative and Removable Pros lab work. Fun! It's all about time management.

So cheers to a relaxing weekend! (well, sort of)

Man Dies From a Toothache...?!

I'm sorry what?!

This is really sad and just pinpoints the importance of access to health and dental care. This is similar to the death of Deamonte Driver, a young boy from Maryland who succumbed to a fatal brain infection back in 2007.  This boy's family faced obstacles with medicaid, poverty and access to resources which resulted in an unfortunate and preventable death.Here, four years later we see that not much has changed. This young man, Kyle Willis died  from a similar situation. He simply could not afford to purchase the needed medication.
This is just a reminder of the importance of health AND dental insurance and simply access to health and dental care. 

Refer a Dental Professional!

I've had so many friends who just can't decide what to do after dental school. Deciding whether or not to specialize, open your own practice or simply join someone's practice is not necessarily easy.  We're always looking at the time it takes to complete residency programs, the hassle of trying to find a job fresh out of  Dental School and the headache of getting a business started.
Say you decide to work for someone as an associate straight out of school, what if there was a way to eliminate the stress of finding a job? What if you're a dentist that own your own practice but have problems finding qualified employees? What if all you had to do was fill out a profile, upload your resume' and just wait to be matched to listings of job openings or of qualified employees?  Say you're not in that position right now but know someone who might be - what if you could get $1000 just for referring that person?!

DentalSpots.com has a job hub that takes the hassle and toothache out of the post-dental school job/employee hunt. It is a national online hub for dental professionals that connects dental offices and dental professionals with one another! It is open to everyone in the dental field whether dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, office managers or front desk staff. How cool is that?!  and check this, the website was created by a dentist! So it definitely fulfills the needs of both the dentist looking for a qualified employee and the dentist looking for a job.
The website just launched their Refer-a Dental-Professional campaign which will run until September 30, 2011. As the name suggests, all you have to do is refer a dental professional to the website and be entered to win $1000. When the drawing occurs the winner will be notified via email.

So if you know someone, refer them! You have nothing to lose but everything to gain. Just imagine what difference $1000 can make, especially with our unstable economy. To refer someone visit the referral page of DentalSpots.com here. To get more information on the campaign visit the campaign page here.

You can also find DentalSpots.com on Facebook and Twitter.

Too cool!

I love anything with a dental theme to it so when I happened upon these key chains it was a given that I just had to get them!

Stock/Impression Tray Key Chain

...of course I switched out my old key chain right away

Stock/Impression tray with Keys

Prophy Angle Key Chain

Looks better with my keys and a few cards on it

Yes yes call me a geek but I couldn't resist. These were too cool!

Custom Tray, Record Base and Wax Rim

It is only week three of the Fall semester and I am already buried in exams and projects. Woo dios mio! But I finally have some time to make an update. We've been working on custom trays, record bases and wax rims in Removable Prosthodontics. The aim is to fabricate a complete denture.

Preliminary Cast - Used to make the custom tray

Preliminary Mandibular Cast

Fabricate Custom Tray using Triad material

Mandibular Custom tray

Side View: Mandibular Custom Tray

Mandibular Custom Tray separated from Preliminary cast

Maxillary Custom Tray

Side View: Maxillary Custom Tray

Maxillary Custom Tray separated from Preliminary Cast

Fabricate Record Base. This is done similarly to the fabrication of the custom tray except the triad material extends to the vestibule of the cast.

Triad material (in package) used to make Record Base

Triad Material (out of package)

Fabricate Wax Rim on the Record Base

Mandibular Record Base + Wax Rim

Side View: Mandibular Record Base + Wax Rim

Maxillary Record Base + Wax Rim

Maxillary Record Base + Wax Rim

Edentulous Dentoform

Dentoform with Record Base and Wax Rim in place.

The Maxillary alignment is slightly off. After I adjust it then...
Setting Teeth!

I love lab work! It's nice to get away from the books sometime.

I had such a hectic week. Restorative Operative exam was on Tuesday followed by Pathology on Wednesday and Microbiology on Thursday - all this while doing amalgam and composite preps and restorations AND making custom trays, record bases and wax rims. I will have a Restorative Operative graded exercise this afternoon which will include doing and amalgam prep and restoration on #12 and 31 and composite on 29. 

I am happy this week is over - Cheers to the freakin' Weekend!!

Free? Could it be?

Gotta love dental school...

Oral-B Professional Care Smart Series 5000 Electric Toothbrush,
Crest Pro-health toothpaste, Crest whitening mouthwash and floss.