Kevin starts out with good news about a new dental assisting program that can add to our short staffing situation. Can we get about a thousand more started? We have work to do! Teresa found a ranking of insurance companies because of course she did. Veterans are very important to the show and to our families so we discussed a few ways we can give back to them.   We’re giving a webinar on December 15th to help you out with your 2022 planning. We’re already blown away by the response. No more just waiting for things to happen TO YOU. It’s clear that you all want to get ahead of any issues ..read more

We try hard to keep your interest! All topics are addressed in this episode. What’s your OSHA horror story? Do you have a patient story you’d like to share? Believe me – we are so interested! We wrap up with Teresa talking about insurance – so pretty much just like most episodes. Enjoy!   Episode Highlights:  Sports Related Injuries OSHA Violations Medicare   Quotes   “Sports related injuries account for 13-39% of dental injuries in a year,”   “If you drop me little mini KitKats I will not say no to them.”   “Just having a big lying there by the chair is the pr ..read more

This episode comes with a graphic discussion warning. There’s a company that will – ahem – compost your body. Of course we had to talk about what to do with the teeth and fillings. It’s not all gross – we make it fun! Oh – did you know Teresa is going to turn her mom’s ashes into a diamond? Who knew!   Quotes Regarding composting: “California is not the first state to talk about this, there are other states doing this.” “My mom could really power a money tree.” Teresa’s final resting place no-can-do: “I can’t be anywhere near gators, that would be wrong.” Kevin’s cadaver legacy: “They ..read more

Is your office fun enough to keep employees happy? If you answered no then you may be in good shape! Turns out praise and appreciation is way more important than a ping-pong table. Who knew? Kevin discusses the overwhelming message he hears from his audience members and Teresa shares her strip club lunch story. How can you not listen after that teaser?   Quotes “What millennials want more than anything else is that they want to have respectful communication in the workplace over trendy work perks.” “If you paint with a bad brush, you will have a bad painting.” “I would challenge people ..read more

We talk about the dental impact on the Friends reunion movie. What did they do to Matthew Perry?? Another workforce study is also discussed. Where are the dentists and where are they going? Finally, we wrap up with a controversial video about how patients slide into our dental chairs. The scooch, the saddle, and the blank stare – you’ve probably seen these wild moves in your office. Any others? Let us know! Quotes “Root canals don’t wait for anyone.” “The percentage of women increased from 24% in 2010  to 34.5% in 2020.” “We are up to about 50% for female dental school graduates.” “The ..read more

An article came out recently that portrays dentists as pushy and treatment-happy. Once again a tiny minority gives a community a bad name. No worries though – we have a hometown hero dentist and a talented vocalist dentist to offset any bad reputation. Hope this one hits the high notes for you! Quotes “Let’s be honest 99% of the time if you are told you need a filling, you probably need a filling.” “Did you know a lot of times whistleblowers will receive part of the settlement?” “We enjoy reading about the practices that are doing things wrong… we enjoy the trainwreck.” “There has not been a ..read more

Offices in WA state almost got some relief from PPE fees until reality set in. Pesky details are never a fun surprise. What would you do with $100K worth of dental equipment? We share the story of a thief who stole COVID vaccine vials along with dental equipment. Is a laser’s street value higher than an xray sensor? We pondered this along with the news that new dental schools are popping up soon.   Quotes “I think people are definitely hungry to get back in front of each other.” “Dentists who thought they had a good relationship with their supplier realized there was more they could hav ..read more

Wildlife veterinary dentist is definitely an interesting career choice. One of us has a huge fear of ancient animals with teeth – guess which one! We also talk about a very strange study about oral surgeon Nazis. Just because you can study it doesn’t mean you always should. Finally we talk about how people tend to end conversations at different times which can make for some awkward patient conversations. Quotes “We’ve got a crocodile over here that needs to have 3 teeth removed, you up for that?” “You are going to look at a photo and your eyes are going to melt, it will be so white.” “We br ..read more

We opened up talking about a Minneapolis practice that has finally reopened after last year’s riots. Hats off to Dr. Ali Barbarawi for committing to his community when many businesses fled. We then shifted to talking about specialists and why it’s been a struggle for some of them. Could the decision by Delta to delay reductions signal an understanding that the struggle is real? Especially post-COVID.   Episode Highlights Chicago Lake Family Dental reopening Postcards are back – maybe? Unhappy specialists Anesthesiologists are left behind Quotes   “It is said it suffered 1 Million ..read more

IMPORTANT! We are changing podcast hosts soon. You'll need to point your podcast app to our new site: https://www.odysseymgmt.com/podcasts/chew-on-this-a-dental-podcast Do people still click on suspicious email links? They sure do! Aspen Dental had a large data breach. We talk about how offices of all sizes can be hit by this. The importance of patient safety comes up as we discuss a very sad patient death coming out of Washington state. We end on a light note - did you know that Kevin has Nigerian blood in him? Perhaps he's sending the emails out to practices .... hmmm.  As always, more ..read more