Week of Nov. 27-29

The Fall is winding down, and everyone is scrambling to complete their requirements.
Tue. AM I finished my last Class III Qd. at WSU. This pt. has been super to work with, an elder with a great sense of humor. Did my Root Debridement PE, which was a source of some frustration for the instructors involved as well as me, since I thought I had a good understanding of L & R ultra tips. Well, the next day I spent a couple of hours working on Mr. Dexter and reviewing the text, which was very helpful.
PM I had expected two brothers, instead had a sister and a brother, 2 IAs. Great kids, doing a good job, with a mom who obviously cares. Probably will schedule one or more of the kids for sealants in Jan.
Thurs. at VA a Big Day: still needed 8 Qds. of a III. In AM did 4 Qds on a III with 3 exams, and in PM did 2 Qds. of a III. So, scheduled my PM pt. for completion (1 more Qd) next Th. Dec. 6, which will leave me needing 1 more Class III Qd. Whew! I administered LA (supervised, of course) to my PM pt. Did an IA and a long buccal. As in anything, experience makes all the difference. Keep that syringe over the pres!

Week of Nov. 20

Hey, I'm so excited! I was able to get my last week's blog published, and it actually is visible! I guess the computer genie is at work or the computer imp is off causing havoc somewhere else. I'd better catch up while I can.
OK, this week was a one clinic day week since Thurs. was Thanksgiving.
The day seemed dicey as my pts. cancelled, but I was able to find someone from the call list who was a new pt. She wanted fullmouth X-rays before her dental appt. Dec. 3, so I was able to help her out.
In PM I saw a new pt. who turned out to be a Class II, so I was able to clean 1 Qd. and will complete her in Jan. This was my last Qd. of a II I needed for Fall. Ra! She was originally from Mexico and has been in the US for 8 years. She understood more English than she spoke, and I could speak some simple Spanish, so we did fine. I had Lili help out in a few tougher areas. For someone who, by her report, had never been to a DDS, her teeth really were not as bad as you'd expect.

Attempt #3 for Nov. 13-15

OK, here's attempt #3 for this week. I've saved my previous blogs before hitting "publish," but when the blog page is viewed, only the date shows. I don't know what the problem is, but I will try again to complete my blogs.
Tue. AM I saw and completed my mockbrod. pt. and learned about a technique error that caused me to miss some interproximal areas. This is good!
VA clinic continues to be an excellent experience despite minor pt. and computer glitches.
OK, here goes........

Week of Nov. 13-15

Nov. 6-8

Tue. lab was in AM. We took impressions, worked on desensitization, and practiced wheelchair transfers. People are much heavier than they appear when you have to move them and they are not able to contribute physically.

PM clinic I had a Type II pt. who also is a diabetic. Did my Glucose PE and one Quad. She'll be back in two weeks for completion.

Happy Mockboard Week!

My first mockboard was a very good experience, though, like many of you, I'm so glad we'll have two more before the REAL thing. I need to work on detecting and removing interproximal sub calculus.

Second week of seeing pts. at the VA went well. Like so many things, the more I do it, the better and more comfortable I become. The patients are interesting and offer a lot of variety clinically.

week of Oct. 23-25

Tues. both my patients were Type II, and both had anterior, mand. supra. calculus. I used my universal ultrasonic on both patients with a lot of success, and it was very neat to see how the calculus bridge on the one pt. was destroyed by that instrument! What an excellent technique for pt. and operator!

Thurs. was first pt. day at VA. First pt. was a Type IB who had just had crowns put onto his implants. Seeing the implants on his dig. radiographs was very interesting. Second pt. cancelled at last minute leaving an opening for an elderly pt. to step in. This pt. had recently had implants placed and was looking forward to having more placed in his maxilla. He had traveled from Idaho for another procedure and his DDS suggested he have his teeth cleaned, so my cancellation was his good fortune. I'm looking forward to seeing more pts. at the VA.

Oct. 16-18

In the AM on Tues. we had a lab on medicaments, ultrasonics vs sonics, blood glucose testing, and, everyone's favorite, saliva testing. My group was brave, so we began with the saliva testing. I was the guinea pig, and it was determined that the pH of my saliva was slightly alkaline: Normal. Whew - what a relief!

In the PM, my scheduled pt. had cancelled due to illness, but I was able to call someone on the list. She was an excellent pt., had not had a cleaning in at least 5 years, and turned out to be a Type II with an ant., mand. calculus bridge. I looked forward to using an ultrasonic on that!

Thurs., Oct. 18 was VA orientation day. The VA is a big place with about 1100 employees. Next week we'll see our first pts. here.

Week of Oct. 9-11

Whew! It's after clinic Thurs., and I am tired but feel very positive about my progress. The system here works very well, is so well organized, and is well-taught. If only my former classmates at EPCC could experience this!

Tue., Oct. 2

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Well, here's Trebuchet font. Above is webdings; it didn't translate. Oh well, I do like this color!
During AM I had a wonderful 79 year old man; when I told him I was going to take his vitals, he asked me to please be sure and give them back! He definitely was a breath of major fresh air. Some drama happened when I got a message that my PM patient had cancelled (for not a good reason as I found out later), but my wonderful fellow students came to my rescue. I was able to fill the PM slot with a 1B, my first, and I actually completed him. Prof. Alexander helped immensely.

Tue., Sept. 25

Hey, time to try something else new: Color! How fun!

Had a new patient this AM. Nice, a bit talkative, but good guy.

This PM I finished my second patient a Class V. He had a lot of supra calculus on his lingual, mandibular anteriors. The ultrasonic is a wonderful instrument!

Tues., Sept. 18

Well time to try a new font. I think I like it.

OK, saw a really nice lady this AM, and then in the PM I completed the lady who was my first patient. Whew! She was stressed at 3PM because she something cooking on the stove and wanted to go home. So, she left shortly after 3PM. I explained the benefits of fluoride, but I guess the pot cooking at home was more important.

Progress, not perfection.

Sept. 11

Second week of clinic. Things are getting better, though I know I have a lot of work to do in order to meet what is going on here at Weber. It's very different from El Paso Community College!

9/04/07

Whew, what a day! I'm just beginning to get familiar with Weber's system (which is great), and I wish (not really) I had a video of my interactions with my first patient.
Fortunately, I did manage to get in and out of the darkroom without breaking my neck (due to tripping over the track), but I came close.
Stay tuned for more exciting and embarrassing adventures!

Initial Post

I did it!!