I finally saw my first patient and it was over all a great experience. Natasha and I worked together and actually finished our patient's appointment. I learned a lot during this first appointment. I wish that our patient would have been a little more patient because they were extremely vocal about not wanting to come back to finish and it made me feel very pressured. I wanted to be able to take my time but the way we were feeling is like we needed to finish. I do understand that people come to the school to get discounted prices on dental care, however they tend to skip out on fluoride and xrays because they don't want to spend the money. this is a little aggravating because our patient the other day really needed both done.
I really enjoyed the debridement and being able to help explain to our patient the importance of flossing and taking better care of their teeth. I thought I did an okay job scaling off the calculus but I guess I still had more to scale off once faculty checked. I used the air syringe to check and there definitely was more there that I had not seen. The probe is still scary to me because I cannot read the thing. I may just have to buy a $900 pair of loupes to be able to read the probe better! Those things are so over priced!
Our patient had also improved on their probing depth's since their last visit. It was good to see patients that have improved. I can only imagine a three hour appointment can be tiring and long. When we were done with our patient they jumped right out of the chair and was extremely ready to get out of there! I kind of felt like they were like that the whole time. So hopefully our next patient will be a little more calm and patient so I can feel like I am doing a good job and taking my time. The patient survey from that visit was rated an excellent though!
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Number One how did you find out your results on the patient survey? I didn't think we got to see them.
ReplyDeleteIm sorry to hear your patient was so anxious, its a real bummer when you want to take your time and really practice the scaling. But we will see a huge array of all types of patients with different personalities so stay positive. I over heard a faculty member tell one patient who was complaining about not liking NEW students that this was a teaching facilitiy and that they knew that when they came that was what they should expect. Honestly thats the truth, that is the purpose of this place, and actually you will get better treatment here than a practice because the patient gets double checked so many times and we go into such great detail they are getting there moneys worth. :)
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ReplyDeleteFirst patient is always memorable! For me, I was nervous, but I knew I have to be calm and collected. Freaking out will not help anything. I just tried to do my best by taking it slowly and thoroughly. I always remember the quote from NIKE, "Just Do It!"
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