As I write this a little bit of sadness looms over me as I realize that today was my last day at the office as an intern rather than a patient. Today was not particularly action packed but it was a nice ending to my time there because I got to see several patients walk out completely satisfied with smiles on their faces.
Buried in all of the routine cleanings I observed today my first case of a full set of wisdom teeth. I have seen various patients who had some or no wisdom teeth. I have slash seen patients who had wisdom teeth that were peeking through the gums in various ways and at various angles. The case I saw today was a case with all four wisdom teeth so Dr. Sims took a panoramic x-ray to see if the teeth needed to be removed. The x-ray revealed that the teeth were not currently effecting any of the other teeth in a negative manner. And although the teeth had no negative effects at this moment, Dr. Sims informed the patient that she should probably have them removed to prevent any pockets in the mouth where cavities could form. Other than the wisdom teeth in the patient’s mouth, this patient had the most perfect set of teeth that I have seen (even better than the patient yesterday!). There was not a single cavity or dark spot or crack throughout the patient’s mouth nor was there any sticky areas or discoloration. This patient came today with other family members and all of them had spotless teeth, and I was amazed at the genetics that this family had.
Before today I have seen multiple impressions be taken, whether it be for an implant or for a crown I have watched impressions be taken for all four quadrants of the mouth. Today I watched one impression and it was for a specific brand of implant. Three impressions were taken, one of the upper teeth, one of the lower, and one of the bite. I found the impressions for both the lower teeth and the bite to be interesting. The lower impression was interesting because two separate materials are used to make the impression. A thick layer is placed all over the teeth and a thin layer is placed directly over the part where the implant is. This thin layer molds into the thick layer, but because it is thin it dries in a more detailed shape to allow better precision when the implant is being made in the lab. The bite impression is also interesting because rather than it being placed into a piece of plastic and then into the mouth, it is placed directly on the teeth and molds into the bite mark in less than 15 seconds. The ease with which impressions are possible amaze me and I think what the lab is able to do with these simple impressions is amazing as well.
I would also like to shortly discuss something that I have been learning about ever since my first day at the office but I have not taken time to discuss yet: patient and doctor interaction. Dr. Sims is extremely personable and welcoming, and this is evident throughout his office. He knows every patient that walks into the office and he is always interested in what is happening in his patient’s lives. I think that this contributes to the professional relationship that is established between patient and doctor in an extremely positive manner. I have been extremely impressed with the interactions between Dr. Sims and his other employees and his patients. Within his office it is almost as if there is a small village of people who all know and help each other. This small business vibe is something that I think is extremely important in trusting health professionals and Dr. Sims is extremely successful in running a business that is strongly geared towards family.
I am so thankful for my time at Sims Family Dentistry, and I know that I learned things about dentistry and about the workplace that no textbook could ever teach me. I am glad I will be able to carry with me not only a small bit of knowledge about dentistry, but also a lot of knowledge of interacting with people. Thank you Sims Family Dentistry for being so welcoming and helpful in my journey of learning about dentistry!
PS- The radio came back on today, so it lives!!! 🙂
