Pediatric dentist to spend decades in prison | Zhuzh up the patient experience | Must-reads

Dear DrBicuspid Member,

Hello from Boston and the Yankee Dental Congress! This is always one of my favorite dental meetings of the year, as I annually have the pleasure to speak to dental assistants from throughout the Northeast. It’s a great chance for me to connect with these amazing team members and remind them just how valuable they are to the success of their practices. 

While here, I’ve been pushing out to assistants the importance of learning through whatever method works best for them. Those options on DrBicuspid.com include our podcasts, and I really enjoyed recording this one recently with Dr. Gabriel Bowen from the University of Utah on a way that dentists can help solve mysteries that have been years in the making. How? Check out the podcast to find out. 

Another podcast to hear is Dr. Ankur Gupta discussing his message for fellow dentists about how to transform the patient experience in the dental practice. With the dawning of a new year, it’s time to think about new ways to connect with your customers. 

We also have learning in the form of video this week, thanks to someone I respect greatly in the industry for both his integrity and knowledge of dental materials … Larry Clark. In this article, he joined me to discuss a new product that could change how dental implant procedures are performed as a video follow-up to five questions I asked him. 

Don’t worry, we still have plenty of written articles as well, including a few that our readers really loved this week. The state of Iowa came under the microscope twice this week with one dentist facing new charges and another accused of being intoxicated while performing an endodontic procedure. Also from the middle of our great country, an Oklahoma woman has been charged with forgery after producing documents that helped her gain a job as a dental assistant. 

Finally, let’s end the week on a good note, shall we? Reducing pain is always a popular thing, and that’s what a new tool that uses LED lights to numb dental patients without using needles is working to accomplish. 

As always, thanks for reading DrBicuspid.com … and make sure you’re reading on Monday as we announce the winners of the 2024 Cuspies! 

Kevin Henry
Editor in Chief