Quality Dentistry

Wow, how the year is flying by! Thanksgiving is almost here. The girls in the office are getting ready to start up the secret Santa game. Lowes has all of the X-mas stuff out in full force. I say this every year, but it seems like it starts sooner and sooner. I always feel like the holidays have been hijacked by the retailers!

Here is s little scenario for you to chew on. What if you worked in a group practice and you were aware of and witnessed some horribly grotesque habits by another dentist? Let's say, someone not using gloves routinely to do exams and treatment. Take it another step: seeing a dentist wearing gloves but then pick their nose with the gloves on and then go in the mouth. When I say pick their nose, I'm not talking about an accidental wipe, but digging to the knuckle for buried gold. How about talking to the patients about their personal hemorrhoid problem, then scratching their rear end, and then right back to work?

What would you do? I know what I would do - call them out! What patient would let a dentist do this? This is not happening at my office (and never would be tolerated), but can you imagine? I cannot even consider this going on, but it does. I go through gloves like crazy. I change them for everything. No excuse!

Do you think these people do not realize they are doing it, or are so much in a zone they forget what they are doing? Do you think it is that they just do not care? How far we have come from wet finger dentistry and herpetic whitlow! I remember seeing some of the old Navy training videos and they were not wearing gloves! Seems crazy today.

Anyway, there is no excuse. It just embarrasses me that professionals could act this way. But again, they are only professionals by title not actions.

Have a great week.

JJ