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Imagining Robots in the Dental Office
Imagine if a robot were more accurate in doing sinus lifts than our surgeons, would patients be open to having a robot treat them? Would it be peculiar if a robot gave suggestions to a surgeon on how to extract a complicated third molar extraction after scanning a panoramic x-ray with zero error and
Embracing the "To Live For" Philosophy
Eating is essential for life. It is not only necessary to keep us alive, but also can be a source of great pleasure and important social interaction. Not surprisingly, a great portion of our lives is devoted to preparing and eating food. A common misconception is that dentists do not approve of so
We Must Defend and Protect Our Patients and Profession
AGD Responds to Unwarranted Attack on Dentistry Dentistry has been under attack in recent weeks. I’m sure you’ve seen the articles that went viral — one about a dentist’s alleged unnecessary dental services and fraudulent billing and one about a fatal reaction to toothpaste
Resolving to Improve Dental Skills with CE and a Touch of Humility
When Rafael Nadal, a professional tennis player ranked second in the world, lost the final match in the Australian Open in January, his runner-up speech included the phrase, “I will keep working hard to be a better player.” This stuck with me because, with the start of the new year came
Renew and Invigorate your Practice this Spring
I love Chicago for many reasons, but one of the most notable is the changing of the seasons. The beginning of spring is always a great time of year because Chicago is notorious for very long, cold and windy winters. In early spring, the snow is melting, the trees and flowers start to bloom, and the
Life, All that Jazz and More
I grew up in Toronto in a family with a strong musical tradition. I was named after a world-renowned concert violinist, Louis Rotenberg. My mother’s oldest brother was Percy Faith, one of the most prolific recording artists of the 20th century who produced over 60 albums, garnering Oscar nomin
Maintain Balance in Your Practice During the Hectic Holidays
It’s the holidays! A season of cheer — and, for many of us, a season of rushing around and stressing out. For those in the dental field, this seasonal sentiment especially applies when it comes to patients who call the office to schedule appointments during an already-packed December or
Human Disease and the Rod of Asclepius
There are not many infectious diseases that have humans as the primary or sole source of carrier and transmission. One of them is Smallpox, and thanks to a concerted worldwide effort with vaccinations, has been eradicated from our planet. Another one is a parasitic worm, the Guinea worm disease (GWD
Harvest Your Dental Practice
I’ve enjoyed maintaining a small home garden as a hobby for years. While harvesting some of my peppers this year, I realized the numerous similarities between maintaining a garden and a dental practice. Both share similar stages of development over time: prepare, plant, nourish and harvest. Ea
A Tribute to My Dad and My Dental Beginnings
On a cold New England night in 2001, I received the best piece of mail I could have received: my admission letter to dental school. This night, and the day I graduated from dental school, were truly the happiest days of my life. I have been thinking about those times because my father, my strongest
P2P Solidifies Relationships
I have been a proud member of the Crown Council, an association for independent dental practices, for many years. They host the Crown Council Annual Event and bring in five or more of the best speakers in the world to teach and mentor attendees. These speakers are often not dentists, but they cover
Is a Pumpkin Spice Latte Good for Your Teeth?
With the coming of fall, we also see the arrival of pumpkin spice flavored everything. But the vanguard and champion of them all is Starbucks' pumpkin spice latte, whose arrival every year is treated as a singular event, a marking of the changing season as inevitable and reliable as the equinox itse
What to Look for When You’re Hiring
One of the biggest challenges we business owners face is finding the right team to support us. In order to find the best candidate, we focus on identifying their core values: What is this person really about? What traits do they use to describe themselves? However, it’s equally important that
Digital Versus Paper: Preserving the Tradition of Reading Paper Dental Publications
When I was a dental student, my class was among the first to have the option of purchasing digital textbooks. It sounded so futuristic. Some of us marveled at the possibility of liberating ourselves from carrying enough books to put any strength-training program to shame. Others, like myself, contin
Be an Influencer
These days you cannot spend much time on social media without stumbling across an “influencer.” What does this term really mean? How does a person reach this status? How do I become an influencer in the dental field? I believe that each and every one of us can become a dental influencer
Selling Your Practice: Part 3
Do you remember your awkward first dates? Once your office is on the market, you will again go on many first dates. You will be contacted by many prospective buyers. You will set up times for them to visit your office. You will be asked countless questions about your practice. But, just as important
Applying Dr. Gawande’s Checklist in Dentistry
If you’ve ever sat down to a dental procedure only to be frustrated by not having relevant instruments or materials nearby, or if you’ve had an intra-op complication that could have been prevented if there had been a pre-op review with the team, then Dr. Atul Gawande’s “The C
My First AGD Scientific Session
It only took me 30 years to attend my first AGD Scientific Session. “Where does the time go?” I hear that expression all the time. When I was younger, I just did not get it. For the first 36 years of my life, my life changed every two to six years. Elementary school lasted six years; j
A Tribute to Roy Rasmussen
He was born, the eldest son of three, to John and Esther on Oct. 5, 1924. He grew up on the family farm in Standard, Alberta, Canada, but he knew early on that the rural life was not in his future. After serving our country in the second World War as part of the Royal Canadian Air Force, he was of
Whatever the Weather - New Orleans, Here I Come!
This past winter was extraordinary. Friends and colleagues in every region lodged complaints against the long, cold winter. Though there is no doubt that global warming contributed to these extreme conditions, some of us are accustomed to experiencing large variations in the weather each year. One o
Dentistry Should Value the Humanities
I just listened to a podcast episode with Emmy- and Golden Globe-winner Alan Alda, who told a story about a bad experience with his oral surgeon. The surgeon said one of the complications Alda would experience after undergoing his procedure was “tethering.” As an American author, direct
Keep Your Practice Fresh and Vibrant With an Annual Spring Cleaning
As a long winter ends here in Chicago, residents are beautifying their homes both inside and out. But the annual spring cleaning ritual need not be limited to our homes; we can apply the routine to our dental practices as well. Doing so will keep the practice fresh and vibrant year after year. Here
Selling Your Practice: Part 1
The time has come to sell my practice. This is not a decision any dentist make lightly. I spent many, many months contemplating the decision and thinking of the ramifications for myself and my family. This decision also greatly affects one’s staff. By the time any of us place the phone call
Four Signs to Know When It's Time to Let Go
We all know that turnover in the office not only is expensive, but it taxes everyone on the team. Putting time and energy into training team members is forever a work in progress, but it’s even worse when we have to start from the beginning. Regardless of how much we dislike it, turnover is so