“Recognize Me?”

The phrase I hate to hear

Kulfi ice cream seller in Bistupur, Jamshedpur. Photo taken by the author with permission. This picture has nothing much to do with this story, but aren’t you bored of pictures of me at my dental clinic?

I’m a practicing dentist and I’ve worked in the same city for a quarter of a century now. I’ve seen quite a few dental patients.

Of course, some I remember. The lady who sent us an apple pie after her daughter’s third molar surgery. The man who crashed his scooter into a truck the week after he got his six front teeth capped. The head of TATA Motors.

You know, the good, the bad and the powerful — those, I remember.

Still, there are thousands of cases I don’t remember by face or tooth. My motto with root canal is: find it, file it, flush it, fill it and forget it. This doesn’t lend itself to remembering cases.

Yet, people are aghast when I don’t remember them, so I sneak a look at their names on their medical history and many times, I will remember a case I’ve done from this much alone.

Last week, I had a patient who came in and sat down on my dental chair with the dreaded phrase, “Recognize me?”

I didn’t know her from Adam.

A furtive glance at her self-declared medical history told me her name (no bells), stated that she had “no medical problems” and was born in 1977.

I point-blank told her, “No, I don’t recognize you. Please remind me.”

She said,

“I was with your daughter at the wedding your daughter attended in February. Your daughter sent you a picture of the two of us over WhatsApp.”

I shook off the gall of this lady, expecting to be recognized and remembered from a photo sent to me over four months ago.

I went on to see her teeth.

I gave her a family and friends discount on her x ray and consultation(I didn’t charge her).

Then, I told her to get her blood sugar and blood pressure tested for a dental extraction she needs.

She told me that her dentist in her part of town had already told her that she needs an extraction. She had come to me because I was famous for saving teeth, and might be able to save hers.

I told her that I couldn’t save her tooth. She wasn’t happy.

I don’t know if her resistance to the diagnosis of “you need this painful tooth removed” was what I found more annoying or her starting the conversation with “Recognize me?”

Either way, I find it hard to forget her now.

What about you? Would you ever start a conversation with “Recognize me?”

P.S. The exact phrase the woman used was “Pehchane?” which means both remember and recognize in Hindi.