Out with the old, in with the new

Dec 26, 2010

Editor's note: Dr. Doniger's column, Dental Diaries, appears regularly on the DrBicuspid.com advice and opinion page, Second Opinion.

Holiday celebrations are winding down and we are into our last week of patients for 2010. As I have said many times, it has been a challenging, albeit interesting, year. Of course, this week is busy. We even had an "urgent" phone call on Christmas Eve from a new patient who wanted to get her teeth cleaned before the end of the year.

This is not unusual. December is normally crazy busy, with patients having more time to schedule dental and other appointments due to more lenient work hours and holidays. This year may have been a little less crazy than most, but we still managed to have our schedule filled and to see more emergencies than in months past.

While wrapping up 2010, we are looking ahead to 2011. New patients seem to be surfacing again. Folks are starting to schedule procedures that have been planned for a while. The emergencies of December are turning into treatment plans for January. Things appear to be slowly getting back on track, regardless of the crazy gasoline prices and other unsettling economic news. According to all surveys, consumers spent much more this year than last on their holiday purchases. This is good news.

With all this scheduling activity, I am thinking about the song by Allan Sherman, "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah -- A Letter From Camp," circa 1963, long before electronic records, quieter high-speed hand pieces, HIPAA, and cell phones ringing in the operatory. This is a song about a camper, writing home to his parents, complaining about camp. How bad the weather is, how bad the food is, and how he will do almost anything to get out of there. But in the end, the sun comes out and he doesn't want to go home anymore.

This year seemed like camp before the sun came out. But in 2011 I truly believe things are going to get "bettah."

A happy, healthy, prosperous New Year to you and yours. May we see peace and be blessed with many new patients.

Sheri Doniger, D.D.S., practices clinical dentistry in Lincolnwood, IL. She has served as an educator in several dental and dental hygiene programs, has been a consultant for a major dental benefit company, and has written for several dental publications. Most recently, she was the editor of Woman Dentist Journal and Woman Dentist eJournal. You can reach her at [email protected].

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