Management + Leadership

New year’s book review and giveaway: ADA’s Expert Business Strategies guide

The American Dental Association provides countless resources, both tangible and intangible, to dental students. One book I’ve recently read, “The ADA Practical Guide to Expert Business Strategies,” opened my eyes to many business and practice management aspects of dentistry that we may not be exposed to in dental school. This guide is organized into 10 chapters that highlight important practice management criteria that can help your business succeed. For students graduating this spring, this guide is ideal for you to help with the transition from dental school to private, corporate or associate practice. Though targeted at readers who will soon manage a practice, this guide also has relevancy to current dental students to help manage their patients in their dental clinics. Here are brief synopses of a few chapters that I believed are critical to know of when managing a practice, though all 10 chapters are important reads:

Predental

Predentals: Don’t fear the gap year

gap-yearWhat if you are passionate about dentistry and you look down at your resume knowing it doesn’t quite reflect your passion? The dental school admissions process is a highly competitive endeavor. According to ADEA, more than 12,000 hopefuls applied to dental school in 2013 for less than 6,000 open spots. Therefore, it’s understandable that you may get overlooked if your resume is lacking.

If this sounds like you then I have one piece of advice: don’t fear the gap year.

Predental

Learn new ideas from predentals nationwide

predental-idea-exchangeInterested in new ideas to bolster your predental extracurriculars or to introduce to your local predental club? On January 7, 2015 from 7:00-8:30 p.m. CT, ASDA will offer a free Predental Idea Exchange in a webinar format where student representatives from the Ohio State University, University of Wisconsin, Virginia Tech and University of Central Florida predental clubs will share innovative ideas and practices pertaining to their clubs.

Travel + Leisure

Top 5 dental music video parodies of 2014

Shake it off screenshotThis year has been an exciting one. Some students were accepted to dental school. Some students graduated dental school. Some passed boards. Some did their first procedures on real patients. And some made videos.

I am a huge advocate for video—especially the type that UCLA ASDA is making as a part of their predental video series—but when dental school gets tough, sometimes you just gotta shake it off and break it down.

As the last Media Monday post of the year, I thought it would be appropriate to look back at all of the not-so-dental related videos that have been made and highlight the fun that can be had while in dental school. And so, without further ado, I give you the top Dental School Music Videos of 2014.

Diversity

Racial violence is a public health crisis #WhiteCoats4Blacklives

10432465_10152462170235588_3041522259078267570_nIn the wake of the recent high profile police brutality cases, protests have erupted all around the country. Many of the protests have been highly visible, like the Millions March in Washington DC or NBA players showing support with “I can’t breathe” shirts.

A unique movement, “White coats for Black lives”, staged “die-ins” at over 70 universities in the effort to draw a parallel to the racial bias in police to the iniquities in the health of people of color. Physicians for a National Health Program organized the movement using social media and the hashtag #Whitecoats4Blacklives. Most protests were conducted with the full support or administrators and school deans. The events involved medical students laying en masse on the floor of campus grounds, libraries, and public spaces. Some protestors carried signs saying, “#publichealthcrisis” and “End Police Brutality.” The initiative hopes to open a dialogue and draw attention to poor health outcomes for minorities in the United States and systematic racism in health care education, administration, and delivery.

Student Spotlight

Receiving the Ryan Turner Memorial Scholarship: A reflection

10155041_10152804403176465_6905159845629020817_nMy name is Lydia Lancaster, a third year student at The Ohio State University College of Dentistry and the humbled recipient of the ASDA Ryan Turner Memorial Scholarship. I write to tell you today that anyone can be a leader. Yes, including you.

My path to organized dentistry is a winding one. Born and raised in a farming community in Southeast Missouri, I was a small-town girl with big dreams of pursuing a career in health care. After high school, I moved to Memphis, Tenn., where I attended Rhodes College, a small liberal arts college. Those four years taught me to be a lifelong learner and a contributing citizen of the world, especially in the form of service.

Finances

3 financial books to read over winter break

piggy bank with bills cropYou’ve probably heard the saying “there’s no time like the present.” Well, this is especially true when it comes to figuring out your finances. As you look toward a life of managing time and money, the sooner you get a handle on some of the basics, the better. Other than Money Monday, where should one look to start understanding the made-to-seem-complex world of finances? If you are looking for some guidance, other than the books we have mentioned in the past, here are some good reads: