Mouthing Off

Media Monday: Real dentist of Miami

Media Monday

by  |  on October 8th, 2012  |  3 comments


If you’ve ever surfed your cable channels, chances are you’ve come across some season of Bravo’s Real Housewives. For most of us, it’s hard to relate to these women that spend most of their time (and a lot of money) shopping, going to fashion shows, gossiping and occasionally flipping tables in heated arguments with one another! Well if you’ve tuned into “Real Housewives of Miami” you will find one cast-member you can relate to.

Dr. Karent Sierra is a graduate of Marquette University School of Dentistry. She now practices as a general dentist in Coral Gables, Florida. She claims to be “the celebrity dentist” in Miami, focusing on cosmetic dentistry and creating the “perfect smile.” Her website reveals a dental office with spa-like amenities such as “paraffin hand wax, massaging chair pads, and soothing music via a personal iPod.”

If you’re thinking Dr. Sierra looks familiar, you might have seen her in a Colgate commercial (she is an official spokeswoman) or in beauty pageants (she was Miss Carnival Miami in 1992).

Compared to the women in other seasons of Real Housewives, it is inspiring to see that Dr. Sierra has made a multi-faceted career for herself. It is also refreshing to see a dentist / dentistry on television in a positive light, unlike previous examples (have you seen this clip from ‘Marathon Man’??!).

What is your opinion on the portrayal of dentistry in the media? What would you like to see on TV?

~Katie Divine, Minnesota ’13, Editor-in-Chief

*Note to e-mail subscribers: click the post title for a bonus video!

Related posts:

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  2. Media Monday: Dental Medicaid Cuts: What to do?
  3. Media Monday: Sesame Street announces new efforts toward oral health care
  4. Media Monday: Sayonara snaggletooth
  5. Member Monday: Poppy Carlig–apprentice to dentist
 
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Comments (3)

  1. East_Coast_Dentist Monday - 08 / 10 / 2012 Reply
    Most of the cast members of the Real Housewives show end up embarrassing themselves in the show. So I wouldn't call this "a dentist [being portrayed] on television in a positive light." The whole premise of the show is confrontation and drama, which is contradictory to the professionalism of the medical profession.
    • Katie Divine Monday - 08 / 10 / 2012
      Thanks for your comment. I agree that the cast member's personal lives are portrayed as very dramatic. That's how they get viewers! And for Dr. Sierra to commit to having her personal and professional life televised does inevitably reflect upon her role as a dentist. My comment on "positive light" was directed more towards having a dentist on television whose patient's enjoy their dental visits, she has a charity raising money for underpriveleged children to receive dental care, and she enjoys her work. Compare that to other media portrayal to fear the dentist, the coverage on Medicaid fraud for profit (Frontline piece), and that dentists are more likely to commit suicide (The Whole Nine Yards movie). Of course, Real Housewives of Miami is mostly focused on the personal lives of these individuals.
  2. Colleen Monday - 08 / 10 / 2012 Reply
    Fascinating!

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