Orthodontist: Dr. Sterne in Forest, Va.
I found the orthodontic experience to be really boring compared to the variety of general dentistry. The field has basically turned into Invisalign, and Dr. Sterne has perfected the art of doing digital orthodontics. His office is one of the top orthodontists in the state to go to for Invisalign. This is because Dr. Sterne and his partners have mastered the Invisalign interface. All Invisalign does is nonqualified technicians that suggest the order of the glued-on attachments. However, a lot of the time they misjudge how this will affect the teeth over time. Dr. Sterne and his team go in and send back suggestions to the company so that the attachments can be best utilized and stay on for the least amount of time. The assistants did most of the actual work while the orthodontist would visit the patient to go over the game plan for moving the teeth and with updates. The biggest part of the day was visiting to consult with the orthodontist. This range from young children getting ready to plan out their orthodontic needs for the next ten years or people in their 40s looking for a new set of teeth. I learned that I definitely need more of a fast pace and hands-on work environment. I really liked seeing how it is very imperative to start thinking about teeth early in life especially if you have poor genetics for teeth alignment. Dr. Sterne would guide my questions along and we would come to conclusions together about how to best structure a plan for each patient based on how teeth are susceptible to moving.
Oral Surgeon: Dr. Cyr in Midlothian, Va.
I loved my experience as an oral surgeon because of the staffing at Commonwealth Oral & Facial surgery. I got there at eight AM and everyone was so welcoming. I got to meet all the assistants and the head of staff. I watched two different wisdom teeth removals. The first time I saw someone get put to sleep it made me nervous. I think this stems from when I got my wisdom teeth out which was the most nerve-racking part of the experience. Everyone at the office was so helpful to answer all my questions and understanding that I have never seen oral surgery before. I got to see a tooth removal from an older gentleman whose gum socket had formed a dead skilled filled cyst which is pretty rare. The point of oral surgery is to leave the patient satisfied with the visit and have minimal to no pain after the visit. The orthodontist, also set up follow-up appointments to make sure certain cases heal correctly. From this experience, I learned that oral surgery can be intense however it is a lot more specialized, intricate, and very hands-on compared to orthodontics.
Endodontics: Dr. Lee in West End, Richmond, Va.
Oh, endodontics. This was such a weird experience because it was such a big office and everything seemed so formal. The person I contacted to shadow was very pushy and wanted to make sure I was in and out. The entire office was stocked with snacks it was so different from any other dental office I had seen before. Each operation lasted two hours and was so incredibly tedious. Everything was very digitally by scanning the tooth so the dentist could see what she had cleared out of the canal and when filling the canal with picks how each one goes into specific roots. It was very interesting watching a woman dentist work. There is a stigma that women dentists are not as cable as men. However, as times change the opinions of the general public do too. The average dental class at VCU is 50% women and 50% men. There were about five endodontists at this practice and it was pretty overwhelming. From this experience, I learned there is a good in-between with specifies, practice types, and pace. I like a fast-paced environment with one to three dentists at the practice with a very hands-on environment where I could constantly engage with patients.
Overall, I am very thankful to have experienced various dental specialties. After graduating from dental school you are a general dentist. If you want to specialize you have to go to two additional years of schooling, however, these years of expertise and experience lead to a higher income and a more streamlined experience where you can become an expert at your craft.