While the fight for equal rights for LGBTQ individuals has made significant strides in the past decade — from the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” to the legalization of same-sex marriage — barriers within this community still exist, such as fear of ignorance, discrimination or mistreatment, especially with regard to health care.
In December 2016, a Wisconsin Veterans Affairs medical center made national headlines when nearly 600 patients were exposed to HIV and hepatitis B and C after a dentist reused his own dental instruments instead of performing procedures with hospital-sterilized, disposable tools. This past April saw the publication of “Lion Hearted,” an account of Cecil the lion’s last hours before he was shot and killed by Walter Palmer, a Minnesota dentist who became an overnight internet pariah following his ill-fated safari in July 2015. These are just two news stories, but each one can impact how the public views our profession and how much our patients trust us.
You read a restaurant review on Yelp. You survey the menu and ask a friend about their favorite dish. You may even ask the waiter for more information about the ingredients. Who would have thought that going out to dinner would require so much research? Informally, we use research to help us make decisions in our daily lives. Formally, research is used to gather information and discover associations between topics. With an interest in learning more about underserved populations, I used research techniques to explore barriers to oral health for Latinos in eastern North Carolina from the perspective of community health workers.
Early on, we learned that winning a game of Go Fish or Hide-and-Seek was positive. It gave us a reason to celebrate or be celebrated. Without some competitive spirit, few of us would be here. You’ve probably been first (or close to it) a lot. You’ve compiled a list of “wins” neatly into a CV and presented it proudly. It’s part of who you are and why you’re in dental school. But here, all of your peers have similar résumés. Some may be more impressive than yours. An unfamiliar territory for most, this comparison becomes a source of negativity for many.
Coffee is a universal language, whether it’s a caramel macchiato with almond milk and whip or a tiny espresso shot more relatable to tar. There is care and precision that goes into transforming a humble plant into a delicious beverage. It may greet us every morning before anyone else, but do we really know anything about it? Let’s take a look at the behind-the-scenes world of our morning — and sometimes late-night — best friend.
For the second year in a row, the U.S. life expectancy has declined, and the ongoing opioid epidemic is at least partly to blame, according to a report published in December 2017 by the National Center for Health Statistics. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, death rates tied to drug overdoses climbed 18 percent each year between 2014 and 2016. Over 63,000 people died of drug overdoses in 2016, with adults between 25–54 years old being the most likely victims.
You may be thinking, “How could skills with a pen translate to skills with a perio probe?” It may sound tongue-in-cheek, but journalism had me convincing people to open their mouths years before dentistry. Hear me out. The central focus for both dentistry and writing is people. There is no story without a person, nor is there a procedure without a patient. Yes, that can be said for anything from business to baseball, but what dentistry and writing share is unique.
