Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm – Winston Churchill This past February, Oral Health was invited to Henry Schein’s National Sales Meeting at the Scotiabank Convention Centre in Niagara Falls, Ontario – and it did not disappoint. On the opening night, the hockey themed event kicked off with more … Read more
In the past, we had product-centric companies and then they shifted to being customer-centric, now today the most successful companies are moving towards being purpose-centric. This means that all aspects of the business, whether it’s marketing, service, R&D, sales, IT, etc., all reflect the company’s purpose. To me, everything revolves around identifying your purpose and … Read more
Maybe you don’t pay overtime because you let your staff take a day off when they need it, or maybe your staff doesn’t get a proper lunch break most days, but once in a while they can take an extra long lunch or leave early. It’s nice to think that this kind of flexibility is … Read more
A New look at Systemic Inflammation, Microbiome, Gum Disease Diagnosis, Treatment and Keeping Dental/Gum Disease in Remission Traditionally in dentistry we have been taught to ask our patients to brush, floss and visit us twice a year for checkups to stay healthy. In the last few years we have been hearing that by fixing dental … Read more
Chances are that you know of someone with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) 1, and/or your practice has some patients at high risk or early signs of this same, dreaded condition. And chances are you know that these same individuals are entering a decline in their oral health too. Not only because you observe growing inflammation … Read more
Sherry, would you consider volunteering in leadership of your knowledge and experience in Vietnam and plan a service and learning venture for our graduating Dental Hygiene bachelor’s degree students? What would you say to volunteering your time, taking time off work without pay and organizing a trip to a country that is vast with learning … Read more
Beneath bright blue skies with perfectly painted clouds lies a place that is making a change in dental hygiene. As a practicing RDH of 11 years, clinical educator and speaker, I not only welcome the opportunity to make a difference in our profession but I have opened my mind and heart to these wonderful coincidences. … Read more
They say the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. With busy lives, it can be difficult to find the time to volunteer. But volunteers do not necessarily have the time; they have the heart. Volunteering is at the very core of being human, as no one has … Read more
In the day-to-day rush and routine of running a dental practice it can be difficult to pause and appreciate the value your staff bring not only to your office, but your patients’ experiences. We recently surveyed 1,000 dental patients from across Canada and they agree: your staff are important. Nearly one third of patients said … Read more
The Cannabis plant, commonly known as marijuana, is the most commonly used illicit drug worldwide, with roughly 35 million people using marijuana each month in the United States. 1 Other than alcohol, cannabis is the most commonly used drug in the United States. Data from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism 2012-2013 National … Read more
Introduction The goal of modern dentistry is to restore the patient’s oral health to normal contour, function, aesthetics and speech. 1 The era of dental implants have ushered in a new treatment concept where the patients no longer have to use removable dentures, or sacrifice healthy adjacent teeth. The success and predictability of osseointegrated implants … Read more
You are about to begin dental treatment on your healthy 65-year-old male patient when he suddenly develops severe chest pain. You suspect he is having an acute myocardial infarction and immediately call 911. You then refer back to the treatment algorithm, MONA, an acronym (morphine, oxygen, nitroglycerin and aspirin) used in the management of patients … Read more
(adapted from the tune sung by Julie Andrews in A Sound of Music) Caps on incisors and people who listen And brush all their teeth till they sparkle and glisten. Children who don’t even flinch when it stings, These are a few of my favourite things. Ladies who floss and have good solid fillings, … Read more
“Gotta hit the club/Like you hit them hit them hit them angles” – Nice For What (clean version), Drake On November 15, 2018, the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario accepted a new revision of the Standard of Practice for the “Use of Sedation and General Anesthesia in Dental Practice”. This made Ontario the … Read more
Increased attention has been given to employee engagement and retention in recent years. Many practice leaders are now making it a top-priority, investing more time and resources into assessing and subsequently improving engagement among team members. And for good reason. It has long been suggested that engaged employees are more productive within—and loyal to—their organizations. … Read more
Redesigning a dental office is not easy at the best of times, especially when the goal is to create a bright open welcoming space with a west coast feel. Is it impossible? Not at all, as evidence by the recent Smiles By Design makeover. First step was to find someone with vision, and in short … Read more
I understand that it’s mid-February but I’d like to officially wish all the dedicated readers of Oral Health a Happy New Year! If you read the previous editorial in our January issue, we welcomed a new Editorial Advisory Board Member to our team, Dr. James Yacyshyn. I offered him the opportunity to write the first … Read more
Over the last several decades, dental offices have incrementally replaced components of their manual practice management systems with computer-based paperless systems. This means that one-write billing systems, ledger cards, written insurance forms and paper appointment books have, thankfully, become relics of the past in most offices. The final barrier to becoming fully paperless is the … Read more
The one true statement that can be said about working at the front desk of a dental office is that no two days are alike. Regardless of how organized you think you are, how detailed your to-do list is or how amazing you feel ready to take on the day when you walk in, things … Read more
A dentist’s reputation is determined by their clinical success, networking, community involvement and the quality of the content they may publish on their own website, blog or on third party websites as a guest columnist. While academic papers and research work may be sufficient to judge a dentist’s knowledge, they do not necessarily lead to … Read more