Do you “actually” put the patient’s interest above yours? A balance between patient comfort vs student learning opportunity.

I am sure at the start of first year, you are being taught to always put the patient’s interest as the first priority.

Here is the graduation oath that you will read as you attend the declaration ceremony in 1.5 years time.

“I recognise that the practice of dentistry is a privilege, granted to me by the community. I commit myself to practising with integrity, honesty, humility and compassion.

I will assist my patients to make informed decisions that reflect their beliefs. I will treat with consent and uphold confidentiality.

I will not permit considerations of religion, race, gender, political affiliation, nationality, sexual orientation or social standing to intervene in my duty to my patient.

I dedicate myself to the compassionate service of humanity. I will oppose policies in breach of human rights and will not participate in them.

I recognise the limits of my knowledge and will act to maintain and increase my understanding and skills throughout my professional life. I will acknowledge and try to remedy my own mistakes and honestly assess and respond to those of others.

I commit myself to pass on my profession by teaching others, as those who have gone before me. I will respond in a professional way to the opinions of my colleagues.

I realise that I will be faced with challenges throughout my dental career, and I will approach the ethics of each situation individually.”

As you are aware, the general public usually thinks dentists earn a lot of money in general. because they will tend to think that you try to “rip them off” by making them have unnecessary fillings, crowns, extractions… and so forth.

During your student years, you may encounter situations like

1. I am running out of time, but I really want to complete this filling myself, despite it had already took me 1 hour 30 min to do a DO CR, and the patient’s jaw started to ache.
2. I need to do a filling for an assessment, so regardless of what the patient needs, (maybe patient has perio issues), let me focus on the fillings first, rather than just a simple scale/clean.
3. I am the total care operator, and have seen the patient for quite some time now. Previously, I had done a full checkup, some fillings, and I just realized the patient actually has no posterior lower teeth, (fabulous!) maybe I should ask if the patient is interested in dentures or other tooth replacement options in the next session.

Let us think about the oath again.

If one constantly put “the learning opportunity” above our dear “patients’ clinical needs” during the dental school years, it won’t be surprising to see one may graduate as a dentist that tends to “rip off” one’s patients.

In scenerio 1, if the student seeks help at appropriate times, I am sure the patient may not have a jaw ache as a result of a filling.

In scenerio 2, if the patient has severe periodontitis, or even moderate gingivitis, won’t it be much better to resolve the gum problems, which may aid moisture control (and thus, reducing time required) for your upcoming restoration placement?

In scenerio 3, how would the patient think when he/she is being told by the student that one may need a few fillings, then suddenly, dentures?

Talking about patient confidence, if you were the patient, wont it be better to have a comprehensive exam (with appropriate radiographs), and the student dentist identifies all the treatment plan i need, and give me a quote; instead of doing bits and pieces every now and then?

During the tuesday GDP sessions, I would like to share my experience as to “how to manage the situation”.

It will be too simple to focus on how well you did a filling, or a clean (because you guys have spent last 3 years of learning them already). It is about moving to the next level → how to think/ respond like a “real dentist”.

It is about how to customize a treatment plan for the person in your chair, as well as how to work with difficult people/ anxious people under time pressure, etc…

There will be good and bad times during this semester, but I hope you won’t be disheartened, as all of which are good lessons to prepare you to be a competent dentist. Hence 1.5 years from today, you will feel confident to say the graduation oath at your declaration ceremony.