2010 in review (con't)

Before I forget, I have to say a big THANK YOU to all of you readers. I so appreciated the comments. You all have been very encouraging to me and it really keeps me going. You know what else would keep me going? Yeah, a stipend. Are you listening, AGD?

But seriously, I do enjoy writing, but I really enjoy touching people and when you comment, I know I am doing it right.

I had a chance to read the last 6 months of blogs. WOW!!! I have to say, the second half was good. I mean very good. We covered a lot of stuff.

We started the second part of the year talking about weird cases. Remember the blog about the woman who had tetracycline stains and wanted veneers? I convinced her to improve her occlusion because the final result would be exponentially better. So she started orthodontics. She had the upper braces taken off and we did the upper veneers. The cementation is the last time anyone that I know saw her. I mean, flat out disappeared and never had the lower braces removed.

Then the case that took 3 years to do, round house temps on upper and lower, bone grafting, implants. I finally finished the lower and the guy never came back. And I thought I did a really good job on the lower.

I had a blog about CE lecturers who say to email them with any questions but never write you back. I also talked about a teacher at Baylor University that spent an hour on the phone talking to me about pediatric dentistry. I called this blog "Good Dentist, Bad Dentist."

We talked about the economy a lot and how it affects our offices. We talked about internal and external marketing, which led to some talks about service and how bad service is ruining some businesses and how we should guard against bad service in our own practices.

And that led to how we dress and what is appropriate for the office. Is what we are wearing offending our patients? That led to the discussion about what are willing to give up to please our patients, what are we not going to give up, and whether or now we care if it ticks people off. We talked about The Show and how we have to forget all our problems when we are working. Our patients are paying for our best and expect our best.

I talked about 10 products I can't work without. Have you gotten a headlight yet? We talked about what a successful practice was and what is considered a "modern" practice, and I gave you my tips for revving up the WOW factor.

Dr. Ric talked about wearing cycling clothes and that started a bit of a firestorm. Better him than me. I talked about Tiger Woods and how real life affects all of our work. Speaking of Tiger, I wrote a blog on being faithful and how a trip to the adult toy store might be a good idea (and somehow related that to our dental office getting stale).

We talked about passion, and if dentistry is still your passion. Oh, and mid-life or mid-practice crisis. What if "THIS is it?" I wanted to know about your management style and wanted to know who was the boss in your office.

I helped a young lady out that worked for Dunkin' Donuts, and did a smile makeover for her. (look for those photos in the January issue of AGD Impact).

A ghost writer wrote a blog to orthodontists. And a ghost writer wrote a blog about his trip to his accountant.

We talked about sealants causing cancer (or the scare that BPA might). I talked about getting a traffic ticket, which, by the way, I am still pissed off about.
I talked about watching a CE lecture in your underwear - I have improved on my resins since then and they are looking so good. Then there was the riveting tale of me being whisked off to the medical tent after the Chicago Marathon.

I told you how I cut into an adjacent tooth trying to extract a tooth I had no business trying to get out. Then that I wrote about a person saying they were going to sue me because her back and neck hurt from getting out of the chair (luckily she has never called back), and that led to the blog about the Scarlett Letter.

I told you about my TV interview. Then basketball season started and that kid said I was being critical, which opened the door for me telling you that I am a critical person and bring it to work. Then of course we finished up with Thanksgiving and ending back where we started - at my Christmas party.

If you are not a regular, man, you have missed alot. You should go back and read; I don't think you will be disappointed. My favorite of the year was a tie between Dunkin' Donuts and The Show.

The last two weeks on vacation gave me a good breather and I am reading to take on 2011. I did a lot of thinking about blog ideas. If you have any or want to write a blog or two let me know. I am at Jgammichia@aol.com.

Have a great weekend,
john