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Professional News Articles : : ON PRACTICE MANAGEMENT by Janyce Hamilton : When your patient brings in bad press

When your patient brings in bad press

February 01, 2007

Once in a while a patient asks her dentist, "Hey did you see that TV news report last night on that dental scam?" Or sometimes he hands you an Internet printout or newspaper clipping, such as 10 Things Your Dentist Won't Tell You, which I recently read from www.smartmoney.com—and carried on AOL's homepage—(for those not feeling sensitive today, click here).

"Wow," I thought as clicked on the teaser title, "What isn't my dentist telling me?"

This column isn't going to tell you what to tell your patient in response, beyond "Media is a business. They are trying to sell advertising in those newspapers, TV stations and Internet pages, so they often write dramatically and controversially to get attention."

Instead, it is going on a rant and construct an editorial rebuttal to the recent article. Let's rant together for a few minutes, shall we?

An editorial response to the 10 Things Your Dentist Supposedly Will Keep From You

1. "You really don't need to see me every six months."

OK, get ready for the article's painful explanation about this from the writer, who wrote in the expose: "If you're like most people, you see your dentist twice a year — just like those appointment postcards in your mailbox say you should. But where did the rule originate? In a comic book written more than 150 years ago — English satirist George Cruikshank's The Toothache — and the biannual checkup has been gospel ever since."

(This one statement can hurt so many people by giving them an excuse to blow off seeing a dentist regularly, that I had originally written something here my proofreader deleted as being "a wincer—too flaming and negative about the writer.")

To the writer's credit, he says to ask your dentist about appointment frequency.

(If you think your patient can have his teeth cleaned every nine to 12 months or more, please e-mail me and I will apologize to the writer.)

2.  "Those old metal fillings of yours may be leaking toxic waste."

A state representative from California is reportedly sponsored a bill to start "phasing out" mercury in amalgam fillings by 2009. The author of the 10 Things list goes on to say that the mercury mixture in amalgams was "once thought completely stable."

Next he finds a dentist to state: There's no question that it's harming people.

Dentists are on both sides of this issue, but do we really need to phase out mercury in fillings before tests can prove other inexpensive materials are a workable substitute? If a patient has to pay double the cost for a filling for herself or her children, do we run the risk of having the patient say "that would be nice, but let's hold off until it's hurting"?

3.  "I care more about your smile than your teeth."

The premise behind this statement is that American's teeth are so healthy these days, that dentists are really trying to cash in on esthetics, and urges you to get a second opinion. There's no harm in getting a second opinion, but hopefully most patients have a solid dentist-patient relationship which includes trust, so second opinions are not needed. Certainly, if a patient doesn't trust his dentist, it's time to look for a dentist he does trust.

4. "No human being should have teeth this white."

Number four was kooky as a thing dentists supposedly don't tell you. Not worthy of comment.

5.  "When I say this won't hurt a bit, boy, do I mean it."

The writer has the nerve to claim that "the ADA says modern dentistry should be painless" when no such statement has ever eminated from an ADA spokesperson that I've read or heard.

He goes on to say dentists offer dangerous twilight sleep for patients, and some may not have a license to do so. That's unfair. Certainly, this is a very rare possibility, but come on.

6. "My equipment is state-of-the-art — circa 1985."

The idea behind this is "old habits die hard" and the writer finds a digital X-ray manufacturer to say so. Then he goes on to say that "old-fashioned" [non-digital] X-rays are fine too, but they make you spend more time in the dental chair, which is painful if you are waiting for a root canal treatment. The writer instructs readers to call their endodontist before getting treatment to make sure he or she has "gone digital."

7. "Did I mention that we'll need to do this again in a few years?"

OK, every dentist may not emphasize to the patient that the whitening only lasts so long, but it is certainly mentioned. What patient would think a bleaching procedure leaves the teeth impervious to future stains? OK, so there are those patients. But most dentists mention that the new tooth shade will last longer if coffee, tea, cigarettes, berries and consumption of such are curtailed.

The author goes on to state: "When it comes to whitening and other cosmetic procedures, thousands of dollars often buys you only a few years. . . normal wear and tear can damage even the most durable crowns, veneers and bonding. (Hint: Don't chew ice.)."

Where is the common sense? Patients who chew on ice cubes the size of an iceberg (think Titanic) will crack their natural tooth structure, not just cosmetic restorations! Even children are told not to use their teeth as nutcrackers or bottle openers.

8. "I'm a big fan of continuing education—especially when it means a weekend in Vegas!"

This was a bizarre one on the writer's list of what dentists don't tell patients. The writer informs us that most states require a certain number of continuing education each year for dentists, but a comparatively smaller number specify "hands-on clinical study" of those hours. Then he goes on to lambaste dentists pursuing continuing ed on cruise ships and in "such scholarly hubs as Las Vegas" and making a family vacation out of it. The author says some dentists are taking online courses that aren't approved and may not be "real educational" and applying them to their license requirements.

Where's his proof?

9.  "That reminds me of a joke I once heard in rehab."

To insult dentists, the writer tells us almost one in five dentists are addicted to drugs or alcohol, with one in 10 dentists using illegal drugs at least once a year!

I don't put a lot of weight into these statistical claims. Patients can smell booze on a dental professional's breath so easily that no one with a future would risk drinking on the job! I just don't believe the smears. Dentists probably use or abuse alcohol and drugs at similar rates as physicians and other highly educated professionals in our society.

The writer got me a little more than irritated by stating: "Not exactly a comforting thought with a drill stuck in your mouth, vibrating mere inches from your brain."

Thanks for painting that improbable picture for a public that already grapples with bad press on dentistry for their lifetime.

10. "You think this root canal hurts—wait till you get my bill."

Where does this guy get his information? He writes: "What you might not know is that dental treatment is rising faster than other medical services. A $1,000 dental bill in 1985 would translate into $2,837 today, since dental care has shot up at nearly twice the rate of inflation, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and of all Americans who had at least one dental expense in 2003, the average annual cost was $540, up 41% from 1996."

Huh?

My dentist charges almost the same thing as when I was a kid, and I'm no spring chicken.

It is a free country, and so journalists can and will write whatever the heck they want about dentists.

Next time your patient asks, "Doc, did you hear about. . ." hand him a printout of this article for your perspective on being the butt of a bad joke in the form of bad press.

Janyce Hamilton is a Chicagoland freelance dental writer and editor. Send suggestions for topics to be covered, or any comments on this column, to review@cds.org.

Copyright 2007, Chicago Dental Society