(Author Kristine A. Hodsdon, RDH, BS)

Spring is just around the corner, and with it comes the melting snow, blooming flowers and birds serenading their siren song of… spring cleaning.

Just like a home needs to be cleared to free up space and energy, so, too, does every successful career need a good spring cleaning to make room for the new opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.

So whether you are a dentist, hygienist, dental assistant, office manager or dental sales rep, if you want to make your career red-hot, these three approaches can clear the space and create the spark.

1. Tough Self-Love


For genuine, lasting career advancement, look in the mirror and ask yourself:

• Overall, is work enjoyable? Does it provide enough money to enjoy life AND save for the future?
• What’s the best way to get on an employer’s or client’s radar AND stand out in an overcrowded pack?
• Is it time to “fire” that troublesome client, patient and/or employer despite losing the revenue? What’s the potential fallout? Is that fallout manageable?
• Is it time to take a real stand with a colleague, patient or employer, regardless of the consequences?

2. Clean Sweep

A cluttered workspace (private office, car and/or operatory) is a creativity and productivity killer. Clear space equals clear thinking. It also saves time finding things and makes a good impression on patients, colleagues and/or customers.  Ten minutes is all it takes.

3. Get Smart

Staying relevant in today’s technology-fueled dental industry requires people to evolve on the fly.  Lack of knowledge can be a deal breaker for some dental practices, patients and companies.

Approaching technology and professional development from a position of curiosity instead of education makes it more enjoyable, and less like “work.”

This is part 1 of a three-part series on career development by Kristine Hodsdon, RDH. Parts 2 and 3 will be posted over the course of the next few months.

About Kristine A. Hodsdon, RDH, BS:

Kristine A. Hodsdon is an oral health strategist, executive coach, writer and speaker, with scores of public speaking appearances to her credit.  Through firsthand experience and a combined clinical, sales and marketing strategy, she offers a synergy of knowledge and real-world history, making her uniquely equipped to empower individuals and businesses through the delivery of educational programs and evidence-based messages. Dental Influencers, LLC (www.dentalinfluencers.com) provides online training curriculums and career development opportunities for dental professionals to help understand and practice sales, business and public speaking skills.

Just the thought of the dreaded root canal procedure at the dentist makes many cringe. It’s a process with a painful reputation that repairs and saves a tooth that is badly decayed or infected. During the procedure, the nerve and pulp are removed and the inside of the tooth is cleaned and sealed. It’s a common treatment that is performed frequently at the endodontist’s or general dentist’s office.

However, this typical procedure was being done in a very different and harmful way in Fall River, Massachusetts. Dentist Michael Clair pleaded guilty last month to a list of charges, including assault and battery, defrauding Medicaid, illegally prescribing medications, and witness intimidation. The unlawful dentist also used PAPER CLIPS when performing root canals!

According to the Huffington Post, prosecutors said Clair sometimes used sections of paper clips as root canal posts in an effort to save money. Posts are used to fortify the tooth after the nerve and pulp are removed. Some of his patients reported infections and other problems.

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said Clair billed the Medicaid program for the costs of stainless steel posts, and also submitted false claims using other dentists’ provider numbers.

“The defendant physically and emotionally harmed his patients by taking advantage of the trust they placed in him as their dentist,” Coakley said in a statement. “Mr. Clair brazenly cheated the Medicaid program and defrauded taxpayer dollars, billing for health care services he did not provide.”

Clair will serve one year in jail. Dental Geeks, what are your thoughts on Clair’s punishment?

ClearCorrect is a leading manufacturer of clear orthodontic aligners, commonly called invisible braces. The company, which was named America’s fastest-growing health company by Inc. Magazine, is not only on a mission to transform smiles; it also wants to change the world. The Dental Geek spoke to ClearCorrect CEO Jarrett Pumphrey to get the straight story.

DG: Mr. Pumphrey, ClearCorrect recently launched a unique philanthropic project named Phase Out™. What is the mission?

JP: The mission of the project is big, but simple: to help eliminate life-impacting issues for people in need. The issues we plan to take on will include a wide range of things, from malaria to hunger, illiteracy to human rights injustices. The people we hope to help will be all over the world, in our own cities, and in developing nations.

We founded ClearCorrect to help dentists with aligners. Now, we want to expand how we help and extend it to others in need.

DG: How does the project work?

JP: The project revolves around our phase-based approach to clear aligners. Unlike other systems that manufacture and ship all the aligners for a case upfront, we make and ship our aligners in batches, or what we call “phases” of 4 sets at a time. We do this so doctors have the flexibility to make changes or corrections mid-treatment if needed, without the added costs of remaking aligners that have already been made.

The process starts when our dentists choose one of our two products: a Full, which includes up to 8 phases, or a Limited, which includes up to 3 phases. By design, we include more phases than needed to allow room for mid-course corrections and replacements. When all goes well, as it often does, dentists usually have a phase or two left over at the end of treatment. Those leftover phases used to mean nothing. Now, with Phase Out, for every leftover phase, we’re putting $20 toward phasing out life-impacting issues for people in need.

DG: I get it. Phases of treatment phasing out issues, thus the name “Phase Out.”

JP: Exactly. And the best part is that our doctors and their patients are a part of the process. They both play key roles in making leftover phases at the end of treatment more likely:  Our doctors help by using the features we include with our products to make the most of the phases they get (e.g., dental models for making in-house replacements, Compliance Checkpoints™ for ensuring good patient compliance, etc.), and their patients help by simply wearing their aligners as instructed.

DG: Are you focusing on any particular issue first?

JP: We decided we’d tackle life’s most basic need first: water. Nearly a billion people on the planet don’t have access to clean, safe drinking water. They can’t just turn on the tap. They have to walk miles and miles for water, and even then, it’s likely to make them sick. Unsafe water and a lack of basic sanitation kill more people every year than all forms of violence, including war.

DG: Sounds like a big problem that affects a lot of people.

JP: It is, but we’re not tackling it alone. We’ve teamed up with a remarkable group called charity: water. They’ve already made tremendous strides in eliminating the water crisis for millions of people. They’re the experts in this. We’ve learned a lot from them about the scope of the problem, and we just want to help them do what they do best. For every leftover phase we have, for every $20 we can give charity: water, they can give one person access to clean, safe drinking water. They’re a perfect fit for Phase Out.

DG: How much have you raised to date?

JP: Since starting Phase Out on January 1st, we’ve raised about $8,000. That will help about 400 people gain access to clean, safe drinking water. By the end of the year, we hope to help tens of thousands more.

DG: Thanks for taking the time to talk to us, Mr. Pumphrey. Good luck with Phase Out.

The Dental Geek recently had the opportunity to conduct an exclusive dental industry interview with Nikos Soukos, DDS, PhD, the founder and director of the Applied Molecular Photomedicine Laboratory of The Forsyth Institute, and a faculty member at Harvard Medical School and Northeastern University.

Dr. Soukos is also the scientific founder of a Boston-based life science startup named PhotOral™, which has licensed the patented technology from The Forsyth Institute in Cambridge, MA to develop an intraoral light device for targeting and obliterating dental plaque pathogenic microorganisms.

Q: Dr. Soukos, this technology sounds very promising. What is blue light, and how does it kill oral bacteria?

A: Blue light is a portion of the spectrum that makes up white light (or visible electromagnetic radiation). The other portions of the light spectrum are violet, indigo, green, yellow, orange and red.

Some potentially harmful dental plaque microorganisms that are involved in the development of periodontal diseases (gingivitis, periodontitis), such as Porphyromonas gingivalis and Prevotella intermedia, produce and accumulate compounds (porphyrins) that are sensitive to light.

When exposed to various wavelengths of blue light, a percentage of these bacteria can be eradicated within a few seconds. Therefore, blue light could be used as a targeted antimicrobial method to control growth within the dental plaque environment.

Q: A lot of new technologies are called game-changers; do you think this will be the case with the blue light dental therapy device when it is introduced to the market?

A: The use of an intraoral light device with selective antimicrobial action for the restoration and maintenance of the homeostatic balance of oral microorganisms is a novel concept that may lead to a new generation of oral care products.

Q: The prevalence of periodontal disease within the US population has been underestimated, with new data suggesting that 50% of Americans have undiagnosed or untreated periodontal disease. Do you believe blue light dental therapy may have a positive impact in reversing these statistics?

A: Daily and short exposures of periodontal pockets to blue light in human subjects with gingivitis and periodontitis may lead to a cumulative suppressive effect of photosensitive dental plaque pathogens.

This may have an impact on the reduction of bleeding in gingivitis and the reduction of inflammation in periodontitis. In both cases, exposure to blue light may result in the gradual suppression of pathogens, which will lead to a shift of the microbial composition towards a new one associated with health.

Our studies also introduce new research paths, where blue light could be used prophylactically.

Q: Can this be considered disruptive technology that will make toothbrushes and dental floss obsolete?

A: Our intraoral light device is introduced as an adjunct to regular oral hygiene.

Q: How far along are you in regard to product development? When do you expect to launch?

A: The goal of PhotOral™ is to have the first intraoral light cleaning device available by late 2012.

Q: Will there be professional and consumer versions of this blue light dental therapy device?

A: There will be a consumer version of the device, whose use will be recommended by dental practitioners, specialists and oral hygienists.

Q: Are there any other future non-dental applications for blue light therapy under development? In dermatology or surgery, for example.

A: I am not aware of any non-dental applications for blue light therapy. However, violet light with peaks at 405 and 420 nanometers has also been used for eradication of Propionibacterium acnes, the gram-positive species that causes acne. A significant improvement in inflammatory lesions of patients with acne vulgaris after exposure to violet light has been demonstrated.

Q: How can Dental Geek readers stay up to date on the progress of your blue light dental therapy device and when it will be available?

A: Readers can visit our company’s website at www.photoral.com for the latest news.

PhotOral’s Blue-light technology will be introduced at the upcoming Yankee Dental Meeting and can be found inside the High Tech Playground, booth #2634.

What do you know about the street dentists of India? Before writing this post, I knew nothing. I knew there are areas in the world lacking dental care, but I didn’t have a full understanding that in India, it was quite normal for someone with no formal training whatsoever to perform dental procedures.

Luckily, India’s street dentists are vanishing, as the country now has 80,000+ licensed dentists with degrees and offices, and the number is growing rapidly. However, with fewer than 100 Indian street dentists left practicing, the reality of these services is chilling.

A typical street dentist in India has a tray laid out on the ground, covered with a few dozen used dentures. Patients come and go, and the dentist’s hands go straight from one patient’s mouth to another. Flies buzz around the patient’s wide-open mouth, and rest themselves atop any blood that may have poured onto the concrete. Molars are ripped out of a patient’s mouth with a pair of rusty old pliers. This work is typically performed for 100-200 rupees, or 2 US dollars.

The video below paints an amazing portrait of the state of dental care underprivileged people are subject to. The reality we take for granted of materials such as anesthetics, protective garb, autoclaves and chemiclaves is all too clear. Please watch the video for a true visual of what some people have sadly experienced. Although, I must warn you, you may not have the stomach to watch it all.