Life at Work

Everyone knows that feeling you get when you walk into a space that is cluttered, crowded, or disheveled. A little anxiety starts to bubble up, and you immediately want to leave or start cleaning. You don’t want to have this feeling when you walk into your workspace, and you certainly don’t want your patients to feel that way. You...

Today was a tough day. We’ve all had challenging days – especially lately. First, there was Joseph. He hadn’t been in for 18 months between working in Mumbai and the current pandemic of COVID-19. Joseph has been using a manual toothbrush and floss picks daily. He has also been under a great deal of stress having come back to town...

The clock strikes twelve on New Year’s Eve, and magically we are to be a changed being, living by a new set of rules that promises a life as an improved human. This set of self-inflicted rules is often unattainable or overwhelming. A new year brings a fresh perspective and opportunity for 12 new glorious chapters to make different...

Dental professionals have always been masters of personal protection equipment, and we have lately donned more PPE than ever before. Despite being covered from head to toe in gowns, gloves, masks, head coverings, and loupes, many still fail to equip themselves with a vital piece of PPE – earplugs. When noise levels are taken into consideration, it is often in...

At the end of every year, dental hygiene groups and forums are blowing up with questions concerning the 1099 they received from a dentist they worked for at some point that year. Most of these questions are regarding dentists that hired the hygienist on a temporary basis. Many of the responses focus on the legality of being paid with...

In today’s online society, digital media has repeatedly demonstrated its power to influence, and dental professionals have been the recipients of the dreaded and unexpected negative review. Hopefully, your dental practice screens and monitors their online reviews on a daily basis. How you react to a negative review reflects the character and integrity of the office as a whole. Take...

Many individuals comprise a dental team in an office, and the professional relationship between the dental hygienist and the dentist – frequently, the employer – should be nurtured. Both dental professionals are pieces of the entire puzzle of a patient's care. It is crucial to understand what each piece does and recommends to patients, so there will be consistency...

Stress brings out the best and worst in people, and it needs to be addressed in a careful but meaningful way. We need to be there for one another and come together like we never have. Times are definitely tough, and everyone seems to be handling it at their own pace and in their own way. Let's discuss the nuances...

As dental hygienists, we have been taught cultural competence, and respect for diversity on a multitude of levels are important core values to being a competent dental hygienist. Cultural competence means that we are aware of and understand the differences and similarities that exist between different racial and ethnic groups, and we not judgmental about the differences. An awareness of...

Gasp. You mean some people become hygienists, and they don’t like it? There. I said it. Because no one seems to want to talk about it. Sometimes we just need some time away from the polish, scale, floss, educate, schedule, wipe, repeat. A break. A vacation. And, sometimes it’s something more. And, that’s scary! Believe it or not, some people go to school to...