First Day of Patient Tx and VA

On Tuesday I had my first experience at the VA. I was nervous! Luckily, my patient was the sweetest guy you will ever meet. Being in a new environment with a different computer program and a whole new routine is good for me. I HATE getting out of my comfort zone, so whenever I am forced to do so, that's great! I did not miss any spots and overall I felt like it was a good day. This patent had a crown on every single tooth, so it was difficult to explore and tell if I am feeling calculus or crown margin. That was a good experience for me. I also got a Pano and 1 PA for that patient. My goal for next time at the VA is to remain a little more organized and remember my routine, and hopefully remember all of the new computer stuff. In WSU clinic this week I had a 1B in the AM (a recall from last semester) and a 1A for the PM. I did pretty good I think! Unfortunately I did miss two spots on my 1B, but it taught me a good lesson. Prof. Alexander showed me on the maxillary buccal molars that there is almost always something there because they are up near a salivary duct. She showed me a horizontal and oblique stroke to get the deposit on the crown and just below the gingival margin. I was worried about the anteriors because I am notorious for missing spots on the mandibular anteriors, but I only missed one spot there (which doesn't sound like a good thing, but it's a mini victory for me). But after Prof. Alexander showed me the deposit and I felt it, I got it off easily. Also, As Prof. Alexander was walking around, she commented that my angulation as I scaled the mandibular anteriors was right on. Yay! My goal for my next 1B patient to is finish them quicker and reduce my scale time. My PM patient was an 8 year old. Everything went pretty smoothly and I was not as confused with mixed dentition as I was when I saw an 8 year old last semester. There was not much to scale, mostly just deplaquing the teeth and sweeping plaque from just below the margin. Looking back, I should have been able to finish a little quicker. Again, my goal is to decrease my scale times as I increase my skills and efficiency. So far, I am really liking second year clinic. Let's hope some of my patients next week need x-rays, I don't want a repeat of last semester. Local Anesthesia lab next week, here we come!