First Patient!!! Today we had our first real patient. I thought that it went really well. It was good to finally put everything together. I will admit that I was pretty nervous about it, but it went very well. I need to work on my xrays more. I made some dumb mistakes that I have not made this entire semester! Well my patient was my husband and he did a great job, he gave me good little tips and helpful hints. I scaled one quad which was pretty good. I still need to work on some little things like my postitions when I work. I need to think where I am going to be working and then think of the best postion to work in and then go into the mouth. That way it won't look like I am unsure about what I am doing and it will make me more confident to my patient. Today was a good experience

Today I had a mock patient. Well I got a little frustrated at the end because I only gave myself 35 min to scale. So I need to be quicker on probing and more efficient on everything at the beginning. I need to work quicker so I have more time to scale. I finished everything but the lower buccal posteriors. It was a good learning experience. It really helped for when we see real patients on wednesday. I am still nervous! I can't wait until I get in the groove of everything.

11/22/06 Mock patient day. Today I was the patient and Gina worked on me. It was really good to watch what she did and hear what the instructors had to say. I have my patient on Monday. It was really good to finally put everything together in it's order.

11/22/06 Mock patient day. Today I was the patient and Gina worked on me. It was really good to watch what she did and hear what the instructors had to say. I have my patient on Monday. It was really good to finally put everything together in it's order.

11/20/06 Today we learned how to handle an emergency. It was really good to know what to do in an emergency. I hope it never happens though, but I'm glad I know how to approach it. We learned where the medical kit is. We role played and that was good because it is harder to remember when you are put on the spot. Then we passed off our sealant PE's.

11/20/06 Today we learned how to handle an emergency. It was really good to know what to do in an emergency. I hope it never happens though, but I'm glad I know how to approach it. We learned where the medical kit is. We role played and that was good because it is harder to remember when you are put on the spot. Then we passed off our sealant PE's.

11/15/06 Today we learned how to do sealants. We used the air powder polisher and then applied the sealants. I had two put on me. It went pretty smooth today and I just need to work on rinsing. I felt like I sprayed it all over the patient. It wasn't really that bad but I din't feel great about it. We passed off pe's. Today was a good day.

Powder Polishing. We used the powder polisher today and it is so gross! It tastes like warm salt and mint. First we polished a penny and it was amazing to see how shiny the penny got. Then we practiced on each other. I had a hard time with the high suction. I still am nervous about using it and rinsing. I don't know why. The powder polisher is really messy, but I'm sure it will be wonderful when we have a lot of stain to remove. After polishing we practiced instrumenting. I got through the entire mouth!

Sharpening instruments. We learned how to sharpen our instruments today using our stone and the gleason glide. It is a little scary to sharpen your instruments, I was worried that I would do it wrong! The gleason glide was awesome, I need to get one if we don't get one in our instrument issue next year. Then I passed of my polishing PE and my fluoride PE. We also worked on the computer. I still struggle with the dumbest little thing, rinsing! I feel like I splash it everywhere so I need to control it better. Today was a good day!

Flouride. Today we practiced giving a flouride treatment. Before I did that I polished. I still need to practice it, especially when I am rinsing. I feel a little awkward doing it when I suction and rinse. Kristi showed me some helpful hints about it. Then I passed of my Intra oral camera PE and that went well. I also passed off my universal instrumentaion PE. I am feeling a little better doing it but I need more practice!

Selective polishing. Today we learned how to polish. We also have started learning about selective polishing. We practiced probing and then polished, brushed and flossed. It was weird to use the foot peddle with my left foot. I also need to remember to put the rubber cup into the gums and remember to fulcrum while I am polishing. For some reason I felt a little awkward doing it today, but I know it was become more natural with time. I just need to remember the little things next time.