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7/15/2020

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ECU School of Dental Medicine receives $3.2 million to fund scholarships for disadvantaged students

The ECU School of Dental Medicine has received a $3.2 million grant to continue its Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students program, funding scholarships for economically disadvantaged students over the next five years.

The grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is a renewal of a similar award in 2016.

The grant continuation provides opportunities for the school to increase the recruitment, retention, and graduation of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, including underrepresented minority students, who will eventually practice as primary care dentists in underserved areas of North Carolina.

“The scholarship program is exactly in alignment with our school’s mission,” said Dr. Margaret Wilson, vice dean of the School of Dental Medicine. “HRSA has been wonderful in their support of us.”

The number of scholarships awarded through the grant will vary depending on the number of eligible students who apply, said Dr. Wanda Wright, project director, assistant professor and division director of dental public health at the School of Dental Medicine. 

Students must apply for the scholarship each year, so some might receive the scholarship all four years while others might receive it for one, two or three years.

For some students with talent, potential and the desire to serve, cost is the biggest barrier to an education in the health sciences, Wright said.

The School of Dental Medicine uses HRSA guidelines to identify students who meet eligibility criteria for Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students. Priority will be given to students with severe financial need.

Once students are accepted into the dental school, they can apply for the scholarship funding, show that they meet HRSA’s strict program requirements and outline their intent to eventually practice as primary care dentists in one of the state’s areas of need.

Part of the win-win format of the grant, Wright said, is that many of the students who benefit from the scholarships come from rural areas. They, in turn, are familiar with the challenges these areas of the state face and are likely to practice in similar communities.

The ECU School of Dental Medicine also recently received a $3.1 million HRSA grant, directed by Dr. Michael Webb and Dr. Mark Moss, to provide intensive instruction to residents on how to care for patients with special needs.

(07/08/2020)
by Fantasia Harvey

More Information: https://mybestdentists.com/dental-schools/EastCarolinaUniversitySchool


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What is dental school like under the stay-at-home order?

Get to know CDA’s July Student Spotlight, Jose Acevedo from the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC class of 2023.

What is dental school like under the stay-at-home order?

Our education has changed drastically due to the unprecedented crisis. Teaching has been conducted remotely and on digital platforms. Our summer trimester was supposed to be heavier on the preclinical aspect, and we were transitioning into more hands-on courses such as periodontics and indirect restorations. It has been difficult learning how to prep a crown through Zoom, but it has given us more time to fully understand the concept. I trust that once we are back to sim lab, we will be able to apply those concepts and overcome these challenges with the guidance of our experienced faculty.

Has the pandemic changed your career plans?

My career aspirations have not changed due to the pandemic. It is very difficult to predict what the future holds for dentistry, but no change will deter me from continuing to pursue my passion. Dental professionals are needed now more than ever. Many people have lost their jobs due to the pandemic and without insurance, people will be searching for more affordable dental care.

What has been your favorite dental school moment or experience so far?

Despite only being in my third trimester of dental school, I’ve had many memorable experiences. My favorite experience thus far has been visiting a community in my home country, Mexico, to provide dental care to those in need. I had the opportunity to provide dental cleanings and oral hygiene instructions to children from lower-income households. I believe that educating patients on preventive care will leave a strong, lasting impact that will empower these communities to improve their oral health. It has been a rewarding, yet emotional experience as I was finally able to give back to the same communities where I grew up.

What made you interested in dentistry?

Growing up in rural Mexico, oral health was not a priority, and it was not until we were in the United States that I made my first visit to the dentist. I didn’t know the language. It was foreign to me and I was frightened. I remember not being able to communicate with the doctor to explain all the discomfort I was having. He explained what he was doing and guided me through the process, making it less frightening. The dentist helped me overcome my fear and therefore created a meaningful doctor-patient relationship ― one that would impact my decision to pursue a career in the dental field years later.

Click on link for the full interview.

(07/09/2020)
by California Dental Association

More Information: https://www.cda.org/Home/News-and-Events/Newsroom/Article-Details/july-student-spotlight-2


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Tulsa Dentist sees more Dental Issues due to COVID-19

COVID-19 has turned many of our routines upside-down and that, some dentists say, is leading to dental problems.

Dentists across the country are warning people that all the added stress - is causing us to grind and crack our teeth more than usual.

When Oklahoma hit Phase 3 of re-opening, Dr. Neil Hasty of Aspire Dental in Tulsa says patients started coming back.

He started seeing about 30% more complaints about dental pain.

He says he's treating more cracked or ground-down teeth, and shattered crowns and fillings, than usual.

He believes work-from-home posture could also be contributing to patients’ issues.

"Maybe they're sitting on the couch and kind of folded up a little bit more, working on a laptop versus sitting in normal business attire and sitting up,” Hasty says. “And the posture all from the shoulders, to the slumping of the neck - all that plays a role across the musculature and architecture up by your face."

Hasty recommends alleviating stress by relaxing, meditating, praying, or reading.

Depending on the severity of your situation, he says it could be fixed by adjusting your bite or by wearing an over-the-counter mouthguard. 

 However, the damage may require fillings or extractions.

(07/10/2020)
by Dave David
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Did you know? Mark Spitz always wanted to be a dentist from the time he was in high school but then swimming got in the way

Long before there was Michael Phelps, there was Mark Spitz.

A confident competitor with his own signature style, Spitz rocked a ‘70s style mustache even though many athletes believe body hair slows a swimmer down in the water. It didn’t seem to slow Spitz down: In the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, the U.S. swimming star won seven gold medals and set new world records in each of those events. His achievement remained unmatched for decades… until Phelps won eight gold medals in Beijing 36 years later.

Spitz’ Olympic victory made him a household name and a highly marketable sex symbol. A poster of him wearing nothing but a skimpy Speedo, seven gold medals and, of course, the moustache, sold over 1 million copies. Yet as hard as he worked for Olympic gold, he was working equally hard on something else at the same time: his pre-dental studies at Indiana University.

“I always wanted to be a dentist from the time I was in high school, and I was accepted to dental school in the spring of 1972,” Spitz told Time magazine in 2004. “I was planning to go, but after the Olympics there were other opportunities. I did some television and speaking engagements, and things just went from there.”

Spitz landed endorsement deals with Xerox, Kodak, Bausch & Lomb, General Motors and General Mills, among others. Later, he went into the real-estate business in Beverly Hills and became a motivational speaker.

As for having his medal-winning record broken, Spitz said he bears no ill will toward Phelps:

“What greater thing could I leave to the sport than to inspire somebody to have the desire to do what I did and take it a step further?” he told USA today in 2012. “I had that record for 36 years. That’s an awfully long time.”

(First photo from the Bob Hope Special)

(07/13/2020)
by Dear Doctor

More Information: https://www.deardoctor.com/inside-the-magazine/issue-29/celebrities-who-gave-up-dentistry-for-stardom/page3.php


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US dental offices are quickly bouncing back

Yes, U.S. dental offices are quickly bouncing back, but it won't be business as usual. Expect social distancing, layers of protective gear and a new approach to some procedures to guard against coronavirus.

Dental offices largely closed, except for emergency care, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended in March that they should delay elective procedures like teeth cleaning and filling cavities.

By April, only 3% of dental offices were open for non-emergency care, according to Marko Vujicic, chief economist with the American Dental Association’s Health Policy Institute.

Polling data shows about two-thirds were back open in May and Vujicic expects that to reach 97% by the end of June. He estimates that only 1% of dentists will ultimately sell their practices, retire or file for bankruptcy. 

“They seem to have weathered the storm,” Vujicic said. 

Dentists say government loans helped some of them survive the shutdown, and demand for their work is pushing them to reopen quickly.

“The need for even routine dental care never went away,” said Dr. Terri Tiersky, who runs a small practice in Skokie, Illinois. “We needed to get back to our patients ... and our staff needed to get back to work, of course.”

Tiersky closed her office to all but emergencies in mid-March. She then helped arrange donations of personal protective equipment from the Chicago Dental Society for health workers treating COVID-19 patients. 

She opened in early June after buying air purifiers and stocking back up on protective gear.

“We are bending over backwards to make sure our offices are ready and safe,” said Tiersky, who wears two masks when she sees patients. 

Nickolette Karabush was one of Tiersky’s first patients to return after she cracked a tooth while eating popcorn. The 58-year-old Highwood, Illinois, resident has an autoimmune disorder and had been hunkered down at home since COVID-19 hit.

“The thought of having to go to a dentist office really just freaked me out,” she said. 

Karabush settled down after she saw everyone in Tiersky’s office wearing masks and no one else in the waiting room. 

“Everything was very clean,” she said. “It felt like a very safe environment.”

Tiersky and other dentists have taken several precautions like removing waiting room magazines and asking patients about COVID-19 symptoms before they receive care.

Dr. Kirk Norbo has an employee stationed in the foyer of his Purcellville, Virginia, dental office to take visitors’ temperatures before they enter the waiting room.

Then there’s the gear. 

More of a “Star Wars look with the face shields and the mask and stuff and the gowns that a lot of offices had not used,” said Norbo, who remembers not even wearing gloves decades ago in dental school.

Some practices are charging an additional fee to cover the cost of that extra gear. Neither Norbo nor Tiersky say they are doing this.

Dentists also have changed how they practice. Coronavirus is spread from person to person mainly through droplets in the air when someone with an infection coughs, sneezes or talks. That’s why masks and social distancing are encouraged. 

Dental work requires close quarters, and can generate a spray of saliva and water. Norbo and other dentists have returned to using hand tools for procedures like a teeth cleaning instead of instruments that may do the job faster, but create more of that spray.

Norbo said a paycheck protection loan of about $250,000 helped him bring back his staff and pay them until the business caught up after his office re-opened in early May. 

Practices are climbing out of a big hole as they reopen. Personal spending on dental services dropped 61% in April compared to the same month last year, according to the nonprofit health research firm Altarum. That’s twice the decline experienced by the entire health care sector.

It might take a while for all business to return. Altarum economist Ani Turner noted that a lot of dental care is discretionary and can be postponed, and patients will still be worried about being exposed to the virus. 

“People may tend to procrastinate on cleanings and maintenance anyway,” she said. 

Norbo said those who have returned to his practice so far are glad to be back. He thinks the visits help people feel like they are “getting back into somewhat of a normal life.”

“It’s way more than just dentistry,” he said.

(07/12/2020)
by Tom Murphy
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