Last Day of Fall Clinic

I am finally starting to roll with the punches when a pt. cancels. Don't worry it only took me a full year of panic when calling to confirm to get to this point. There have been a couple of time when I have rolled up in a ball in the corner and made Todd start calling random people for me. So once again another pt. cancels and I had the opportunity to experience the pt. list for the first time. I feel lucky I have never had to use it before. It ended up being a great experience.
My morning started out with yet another class III pt. And I am proud to say that I finished her whole mouth plus x-rays in one apt! I didn't want her to have to wait until January to get her finished so I booked it the whole time. Still struggling with classifications but working on it.
My goal for next semester is real world application. I am going to ask my instructor to help me know what to walk the pt. out as at every apt. so that in a real dental office I know more of what I am doing. I understand the concept between the different codes but have a hard time knowing which one to use.
The afternoon last minute patient was awesome. She was a 1B and the most pleasant person ever. She let me and Brooke pass off the Velscope on her and I got a conventional pano. It was a relaxing and perfect way to end my fall clinic schedule.
Now if only we could skip all of our tests and go straight to Christmas Break....

Lab Day!

Today started well. I had a super nice class III lady this morning. She asked so so many questions. I felt like I was taking an oral quiz on how to explain everything I have learned in the last year and a half. It is so fun to have a pt. that actually cares about what you have to tell them. She was a golden pt. She had been a nurse for 20 years and was so interested in all the physiological aspects of what we do. It was quite exciting. Loved it. Passed off the last of my fall PE's, Hooray. I also had a great learning experience with her as well. All of her mandibular molars were crowns with 7mm pockets. I learned how to really scale around crowns so much better than I have ever been able to. Dr. Hanson taught me a new way to have the suction so that it is manageable for me and the pt. and how to sit to ultrasonic in a more ergonomic position.
It was quite relaxing knowing that we had a lab in the afternoon. I got to go home for lunch and stroll in last minute before lab started. So nice. In the lab we went over the Velscope, reviewed disaster protocol, transferring wheelchair pts to the dental chair, desensitizing agents, and played with little hotdogs that turned into people in the wet lab. It was actually a really interesting and fun lab. I loved the Velscope. Other than having the older version that weighs a million pounds and costs a small fortune it was pretty amazing. I hope we get to use it a lot in the future. Heather got to be the demo girl in my group. She made the most amazing paraplegic, it was quite impressive.

Extra-oral and accessory fulcrums

The Velscope was pretty sweet

We are so stylish

Always love the socks

Feeling the love?

Sam considering if this is really worth 5 PAs....

Marianne is a pro

I broke my hotdog!

Our efforts to stay focused failed. We ended up with hotdog people instead.

File magic

Today was a pretty easy day at the VA for me. I had the most talkative V in the morning. I am going to miss having three hour apts. in private practice. I would have been sad to have to rush him out because of a time limit. It is fun to get to know the pts there. They have had such interesting lives and I really enjoyed talking to him the whole morning.
The afternoon was fun as well. My pt. was a young guy that had a wisdom tooth hole that never sealed up. He had a few 4-5mm pseudo pockets from inflammation but then right behind #18 you could actually see the hole. It was a little bizarre. It was a 9mm pocket and was the only place he had radiographic calculus. Prof. Bossenberger really helped me. I experimented with my files and graceys and then she came over and helped me modify my tech to be more effective. I love the files, they fit so much deeper and are magical. Love love love them. Also am slowly learning to appreciate the graceys more. Using an oblique stroke with the graceys on the distal of 18 was the only way I could have possibly got any of that calculus. Also I learned the big difference between aggressive root planing. Because of time constraints I did the best I could and then we scheduled him back to have it numbed and aggressively cleaned. It was a nice learning day with a yummy lunch. (Biaggios=two thumbs way up)

Finally some 1As!

So Heather was incredibly generous and let me see her two adorable cousins so I could meet my 1A requirements. They were so cute and well behaved. It was a breeze to clean them after some of the uncooperative kids from the Children's Health Connection. Got some sealants done and finished fast. It was a great morning. They were cracking me up the whole time. Then for the afternoon I had Todd come in...this time as the pt. and not the translator. It was good that he came in cause he had a cavity too! Todd has had one cavity in the whole time we have known each other, and that was after never flossing and not going to the dentist for 6 years. Lately we have been going through an orange juice phase and it shows. He had two incipient caries, guess what that means....fl varnish every night! Bet he will love that. It really drove home for me why we give diet suggestions as a dental hygienist.

Relaxing day

After a slight scramble and panic last night the day turned out quite well. Bless Todd for putting up with all my crazy. When two patients cancelled last night it was Todd that saved my tush and called a bunch of pts while I had a little tantrum in the corner. Then he once again came and translated for me. Want to know the secret to getting class III pts... know Spanish...or have a very generous husband that does and is willing to come sit and watch me clean teeth for 4 hours every single Tuesday. He should have made Dental Hygiene his career because he logged more clinic hours than I have.

Today was fun. Had a Spanish 1B in the morning. I am learning a lot about sensitivity and how to play detective to get to the bottom of what is causing it. Then I saw my mom in the afternoon. So relaxing, I like her. She has the cleanest teeth I have seen all semester. Love it, I might get used to this easy pt. thing after all.

HALLOWEEN PARTY

I love how crazy our class is. People had some serious costumes. I think the pictures speak for themselves. Also the doughnut eating contest was pretty funny to watch, and Maddox rolls are delicious. That is all.

Local Anesthesia rap

Driving in the car was a bit tricky with our hats

Clue!

Quote of the day

"You don't want to marry your denture pt!" --Dr. Naylor

VA coolness

Today I saw some new and really neat stuff. My first pt. had to have nitroglycerin out which was fun. He was a cute little chatterbox. I got to place arestin in one area on him.
My second pt. came from Idaho and needed everything done so I had to clean pretty quickly. He had some crazy things. He was relatively young but had a serious brain injury in the war. He has pretty severe seizures that have taken a tole on teeth. He has bad back pain and problems and this gums were so red and inflamed from the last apt. from stress and his systemic problems. He was also trying to quit smoking. He had loc. aggressive perio which I had never seen before. And oh my files. I had never used the files that effectively. He had a 8 mm pocket on #27. the files are the only thing that would fit in that tiny loc. area. And when I put it down in the pocket the pus just popped right out. I had never had that much pus. So in case you haven't heard that systemic and oral health are related I am hear to tell you that it is! I got to place arestin in 7 spots.
With my last pt. I learned that I am too nice about plaque scoring. The endodontist also came in and I learned how you test to see if you need just a filling or a root canal. He had some endo-ice, which I had never seen before. It's cool. If a tooth is has caries and is sensitive to cold you test it by putting some endo-ice on it. If the tooth is painful for only a second before it goes back to not hurting than you may only need a filling. If the tooth has a lingering pain after exposed to cold, or spontaneously hurts during the day with for no reason then you may be in root canal territory. Also there was an instrument I have never seen before, 2 probes, and no barnhart, fun. (my 1st pt. had a few implant scalers and a million graceys, weird).
It was quite a learning experience. I also hit my requirements for class II's! Very productive day. Love the VA (except for the instruments ha)

IVs anyone

Cool cool cool, LA is so cool
I like when I can do it without looking like a fool
Today was like a party
11 injections makes me feel like a smarty

Today was fun. I finished my Eaglesoft IV pt. in the morning. She was so sweet. When she got to the clinic she told me how much better her teeth have been feeling since I cleaned them. Her tissues on the quads I had already cleaned looked so much better. I LOVE when you can see such a huge difference! I got to use my right and left ultrasonics, the files, and gracey's. It was good to feel a little bit better about them. Then since Todd was conveniently there translating like he always is I made him chew on a piece of wax so I could pass off my saliva PE.
The afternoon went well too. I got to give my pt. 8 injections. They went fantastically. I felt so much more confident than last week. I seriously love injections.

1B

Today was an interesting day. My first pt. came in to get a good thorough cleaning before leaving on a mission next month. He was a 1B, Horray I thought. Guess what I kind of stink at them. I kept poking him with my scaler because I am so used to the pockets being deeper that I was confused by the lack of depth. I felt pretty bad for him. I took as long to clean him as I did to clean my class IV pt. in the afternoon. I kept thinking I must have missed the calculus because there was none. I think I need to get a few more 1Bs in to practice on. My afternoon pt. was the nicest older man ever. I got to do some injections on him too! He opened his mouth and my mind went blank. His mouth looked nothing like the girls I had practiced on so far! Made me look pretty dumb but I am glad for the experience. I will always review right before clinic now so that even with the variations in oral landmarks I will be able to find what I need and look competent!

Disaster Lab Day

Can I just say how happy I am to be a hygienist and that I don't have to take impressions often? The Local Anesthia lab in the morning was so fun. We got to give all 7 of the injections and are now free to give them on pts! I kindof lied to my pt. I will see next tuesday. I told him that I had no openings over a month ago until tuesday because I wanted to be able to do the injections on him. I think it will be worth it. Whitney was my partner and she was a pro. One thing I need to remember is chair positioning. It was a pretty fun morning.

The afternoon took a bit of a turn for the worse. Poor poor Whitney, bet she was regretting being my partner then. I don't have much experience with taking impressions in private practice....and it showed. I think out unit was cursed as well since it took a million tries and people to finally get them. MeChel came in and saved the day. She was having a wonderwoman impression day and was running around doing everyones that couldn't get it. I hated the impression material we had. Curse those stupid bubbles. Then when we went to pour them up mine looked pretty funny cause I had no idea what I was doing. What I learned is that when my pt. needs impressions I need to find an assistant to do it!

I gave up and MeChel the pro took over

Still smiling

Payback time

First Mockboard!

Today was our first mockboard. I was scheduled for the afternoon and haven't been too nervous for it until I was assisting as the patients were being checked. I am so so glad I go to Weber and have teachers that prepare us so well for the board exams. I can't imagine what a wreak we would be without it. I had the nicest, most patient pt. ever and had my sweet husband there once again to translate. I didn't realize just how much I depend on the instructors. When I have a piece of calculus that is difficult or when I can't tell if it is calculus or irregular tooth structure I just do my best and say "oh well, I will see what my instructor says." This really opened my eyes that I need to ease off of that dependence. It will not be that way in the real world. Anyway we survived and the best ice cream pod wrap and will move on. Glad it's over.

Children's Health Connection and Sharpening Party

Today I get to hang out with Maren again. Yeah I don't think I have seen her since the Women's Health Connection because we are now in opposite clinics. It's a bit lame. We are doing x-rays all day today. Party. The little kids so far have been adorable. Some of them are pretty nervous but it always surprises me just how much they can do.

Today is the Children's Health Connection

Way better than any election

I get to hang with some pretty cool gals

I feel lucky to call them my pals

Good kids and bad there have been a few screamers

Maybe the next one won't yell, yes we are dreamers

Halloween costumes, I know them all

Talking about candy, makes them not bawl

Massages by Heather

Makes me feel light as a feather

Fun is had by all

What a wonderful event for the fall

Down time=massage time

On Saturday I signed up as hygienist. It was so much fun and I finally feel comfortable cleaning kids. I have only really cleaned two kids before and it wasn't my best day. Some of the kids had more calculus than some of the adults I have seen, it's pretty amazing.

Jen is so awesome and came up out of the goodness of her heart after work on Friday to help us sharpen. I love my Gleason Guide. It was a serious party. Thanks Jen!

VA CA excitement

Today was my first day as CA at the VA hospital. Wow the time goes so so much slower when you don't have a patient with you. The whole morning I charted and restocked and walked around. There was a few staggered pts which helped to keep me a little bit busier. The girls were rockin and flying through the pts. The afternoon was quite the adventure. Brooke has the most awful luck and always gets the problem patients. Her patient was, how shall I say it....not a very nice person. He came in and started yelling at her that he didn't want a student working on him. Little does he know that she is amazing and way better than any student that he would have had before. Anyway she had a little bit of a hectic morning and so this was the tipping point in an already rough day. She went and took a break and I tried to work on him. Not only was he not very nice but he was also not an easy pt. He kept telling me he was going to bite my finger off if I hurt him. It was an interesting experience and I am glad that I have been fortunate to have incredibly kind pts. most of the time.

Lab day

After a morning of seeing my class IV patient we had our first lab day. It was quite relaxing. We learned how to use the right and left ultrasonic, files, laser, saliva testing, and reviewed blood glucose. It was a nice day. I have experimented with my right and left and files in the last few clinics and it was nice to learn the real way to use them in a clinic setting. I am excited to try out my new tricks on my next hard patient, which seems to be every clinic day. Turns out I was using the files in the wrong direction, explains why they didn't seem to work too well. The laser is sweet. Joy let me use it on my patient the last clinic and it was fun. It was a good review and good practice. I enjoyed watching everyone's reaction to the saliva test. Lots of gagging. Emily was my favorite. I thought she was going to loose it. That is all

Most productive day up to date

Today we were at the VA hospital. I had a class V patient in the morning. It was the first heavy smoker I have worked on. He had heavy staining and malpositioned teeth on his mandibular left quad. I swear I could not see the lingual of #28 no matter how I positioned myself. I got as much off as I could and was not surprised when the only spot I missed was on that tooth. It is quite satisfying to get that much staining off. I love when you can tell such a big difference from the beginning of the apt. to the end.
After I finished my first apt. I did my chart and went to help someone else clean up their unit. My instructor grabbed me and said to follow her. So I did. Turns out another pt. needed cleaned before he could see the dr. He was awesome. He had the same name as me and had 4 purple hearts. His cleaning involved the most biofilm I have ever cleaned off. He had erosion on all the mandibular ant. and it was quite the learning experience. I love the VA.
I finished him and ran and ate a 10 min. lunch. After lunch my afternoon pt. had cancelled but they filled it last minute. He ended up being a class III. He had great homecare but deep deep pockets. He was by far the hardest pt. I have ever worked on. His calculus was so incredibly tenacious. I could not get it off. I have never had the experience where I knew exactly where the calc was but could not get it off no matter what I did. Prof. Mc. helped me so much on him. It also made me appreciate good hygienists. He couldn't understand what was taking me so long, I didn't want to tell him it was faster last time because they didn't clean any of his teeth.
It was a great day and I learned so much and experienced so many new things.

Crazy Day

Today I attempted something a little crazy for someone with my speed, or lack of speed cleaning teeth. I scheduled four different patients, and passed off four PEs. It went surprisingly well for most of the time. I saw a sealant pt first, then two quads of a class III. Afternoon was one quad of my mockboard class II, and finishing a class IV. Fun. Karen saved my life by taking some x-rays for me. It was fun. I'm excited for when I am fast enough to do that without going crazy.

UDHA convention

I love convention. I don't know why but I just love it. I love going and hanging out with all the other students and hygienists, I love learning new things in the classes, I love all the free stuff and vendors, I love seeing all the newest gadgets they have come up with to make my life easier, I love riding front runner down, its just a good time. On Friday I had a hard time staying awake in class but loved seeing all the girls who are not in my clinic anymore. I went down on Saturday and the class was amazing. The speaker was wonderful and I learned so much. So glad I didn't turn off the alarm and go back to bed.

Also I bought a tooth shaped cookie cutter. Yes, I am that big of a dork.

clinic days

Today was a fairly typical clinic day for me. I finished a class III pt. in the morning. He got in a car accident on the way to the clinic the last time he was scheduled so I was relieved when he showed up in one piece. Everything went smoothly on him. It was fun because we learned the right and left ultrasonic yesterday and I only had two quads left so I took some time to experiment with them. I started with the triple bend and knocked off all the big calculus. I have learned to love that triple bend quite a lot today. Then I moved to the right and left. They really were so much easier to get into those deeper pockets in the posterior. Then I used my slimline. Then moved on to handscaling. It was the easiest time I have ever had with a class III. There was only a little bit left on him to handscale by the end. SO much less hand fatigue. Loved it. My only complaint is the amount of switching the inserts. My ultrasonic doesn't quite reach the sink so my floor was soaked by the end of his apt.
The afternoon went well too. I seriously need to learn Spanish. My patient was about 60 and had never been to the dentist before. Awesome. You couldn't see the back of her lower anteriors through the calculus bridge. The health history was quite the experience for me. We had a serious language barrier problem. I got creative and was typing phrases in google translator but then couldn't understand her replys. Plan B: called Todd and had her talk to him and then had him tell me what she said. It took some time but we got it done. Then I looked in her mouth. Class IV. Cool. Once again used all the new ultrasonic gadgets and had the same result as the morning. No missed spots. Wonderful learning day. I have four patients scheduled for next tues. It's gonna be an intense one.

Funny

Found this little bit written in my notes as I studied for the dental materials test today......"If someone told me I had to be a researcher I would go nuts and eat oranges or something." I love Dr. Naylor. She makes me laugh, I think I am going to write down more of her sidebar comments cause they really make it more amusing to study.

LA round 2!

So I have decided that injections are my favorite thing on the planet. I LOVE them. Who would have thought that I would so thoroughly enjoy stabbing people. And I didn't think I was a violent person. Today I teamed up with Heather McKay and we had a party. She did fantastic. Everything went super smooth. Gotta love the zing. I can't wait to explain to a pt. that they are in pain because I did a great job on their injection and got super close to their nerve. Anyway so I was super numb and we had lunch right after. Then later after I ate dinner I was thinking my lip still felt fat so I looked in the mirror and found out I had eaten my numbed lip for lunch. I am so smart. I have a couple of higher class pts. that I purposely scheduled for right after our next lab so I can do the injections. I am super excited!

Oh poor Heather
Time for her revenge
Kayla looking for Heavenly guidance