DentalBuzz: a jolt of current

trends, innovations, and quirks of dentistry

Share this with patients

By Leave a Comment

The general public has no excuse when the Wall Street Journal has succinctly and comprehensively explained why dentistry is so important to patients’ overall health. Make copies, post a link from your Facebook page, tweet about it. Just make sure that EVERYONE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD reads this article, watches the video, or interacts with the snapshot graphics. Click on the title below to visit:

If Your Teeth Could Talk…

The Mouth Offers Clues to Disorders and Disease; Dentists Could Play Larger Role in Patient Care

 

 

 

 

 

 

Way to go, WSJ.

Pimps don’t make good associates

By 3 Comments

Dentists have found all sorts of creative ways to boost their incomes. Just be sure your special fancy cool novel ideas aren’t compromising your ethics, like this one dentist did a few years back in Chicago. The issue at stake here is one of atonement eligibility. Some things, you just can’t do takesies backsies on. But if you were an accessory to a sex crime yet didn’t actually commit one yourself, can you get your dental license back? Yesterday’s Sun-Times reports the following:

Onetime Chicago dentist Gary Kimmel went to prison in 2009 after he admitted he aided pimps in a prostitution trafficking ring.

 The aid included providing space in Marina Towers for paid sex acts to happen, buying luxury cars for pimps in his name and keeping his office open late to fix the teeth of battered prostitutes.

In one case, Kimmel fixed a prostitute’s teeth for free in exchange for her performing sex acts for his friend, according to prosecutors.

That was back when Kimmel, affectionately referred to as “Doc” by those who know him, ran a popular and successful dental practice at 233 E. Erie.

In an emergency bid at the time of his indictment, the state stripped Kimmel of his ability to practice dentistry. He was sentenced to 37 months in 2009.

Now, Kimmel is already out of prison.

And despite his felony conviction, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned he is ready to practice dentistry again — and eligible to renew his license.

click to read the full story here

              _______________________________________

What a swell guy, this “Doc,” thinking to himself that no good deed goes unpunished. Seriously, this was the thanks he got for giving out dentistry to battered women?

Truth is, if he does get his license back, I imagine that Dr. Kimmel’s career might ultimately be salvageable if he’s willing to be a prostitute for a pimp. Shoe on the other foot, so to speak.

Only we’ll substitute the word “dentist” for “prostitute” and “corporate dentistry” for “pimp.”

Yeah, that sounds about right.

Mis-Aligning with Groupon

By 4 Comments

Guess what? If you’ve ever signed on to participate in a Groupon-type social marketing coupon you may be convicted of Dirty Dancing with the Devil, otherwise known as fee-splitting. And Align Technologies will have none of it. Just to make sure you know that they’re watching you, this memo was sent out to all Invisalign providers today:

December 5, 2011

Dear Doctor,

A small number of Invisalign practices have recently elected to offer their dental services and Invisalign treatment specifically through social coupons such as Groupon and Living Social. In response to this marketing practice, Align has received a number of complaints from other Invisalign customers who highlight that Invisalign is a rigorously regulated class II medical device which requires specialized medical training and a doctor’s prescription. As neither Invisalign nor the associated dental services are generic commodities, these Invisalign customers feel the use of social coupons is not in the patient’s best interests, and is unethical and demeaning to the dental profession.

We agree. In fact, Align does not endorse the arbitrary sale of dental services and Invisalign treatment through social coupons and is not a party to any such offerings. Align believes that the interests of both prospective patients and the practitioner are best protected by requiring a patient examination to confirm a patient`s suitability for Invisalign treatment before extending an offer to treat. Because both your services and each Invisalign treatment are unique (like the needs of each patient), we do not believe that either are appropriate for the web-based, group-buying social coupon process.

You should also be aware that the laws of most States prohibit practitioners from splitting fees with third-parties or non-practitioners. In response to the increase in the sale of medical services through social coupons, there is a growing sentiment that the sharing of fees between a doctor and social coupon sponsor may constitute such an illegal fee splitting arrangement. As a result, we encourage all Invisalign practitioners who may be considering participation in the social coupon process to consult with their attorney to evaluate the legal risks associated with such a transaction.

We hope you find information on these issues helpful. Because the dental services environment is evolving almost as rapidly as the technology itself, we intend to keep you current with our assessment of the latest trends so you can better achieve your practice goals. If you have any questions or comments, please contact your Invisalign representative or email us at [email protected].

Best Regards,

Dan Ellis
Vice President, North America Sales
Align Technology, Inc.

 

So dude, if you’re going to try and get new customers with Groupons, just don’t promise to do any actual dentistry! Offer patients something unique that you don’t need a license for, like this suggestion that was offered here at DentalBuzz a few months back!

If not, you’re probably better off using this method of get-’em-in-the-door marketing:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hey, it’s your choice!

Why the cone was cut

By 1 Comment

Since this month is the 5th anniversary of the moment our practice switched over to digital radiography (and thank goodness we never have to endure the vinegary processing solutions again!), I thought it would be nostalgic to offer up this latest edition of Timewarp Tuesdays and honor The Cone.

Admit it, you can’t help but call the long cylindrical chunk of metal pointing out from your x-ray machine anything but a cone. Even though it probably wasn’t a cone when you were in dental school. It hasn’t been a cone for over 30 years.  But maybe you’re old enough to remember a cone getting pointed at you when you were a kid, like I am.

Back in the early 70’s it was all about sleek and modern – there was something a little sexy about the cone, like it was one-half of a pointy brassiere aimed right next to your eye. A woman would cram something in your mouth, tilt the cone at your face and then leave the room for a moment, giving you time alone with it to contemplate its form and function, maybe try a little small talk with it.

Intriguing, this cone.

Come to find out, it was just a cheap plastic pointer, as exemplified in this advertisement from 1945:

See what I mean about the wistful gaze, our GI mesmerized by that white cone because it reminds him of a part of his sweetheart back home? You can click on him to get a better look at the advertising copy. And AHHHHH! Seriously? Pointing it RIGHT AT HIS CAJONES? We’ve come a long way since then.

Plaskon touted that its cones could withstand “…the terrific impact of X-rays which can disturb the molecular structure of many materials.” Many materials… like human flesh?

Apparently the reason that cones were phased out was because they were an impedance to radiation safety, and so they have since been replaced with the familiar long cylinder collimators. About the same time that the medical community figured out that scatter radiation was preventable, they also realized that imaging could be improved with focused beaming techniques. So the cone is gone, even though the name lives on.

And so to honor the history of dental radiography, I now present you with this Dental Radiographic Cone homage collage:

BZZT! ZAP! [sizzle] ffffphP.  I can almost smell the singe of old wires firing up.

Article Archives

Contact Us

Guest columnists are welcome to submit edgy stories that cover new ground (no regurgitations, please!) , or if there's a topic that you'd like to see explored please punch in your best stuff here and see if it ends up sticking to the website.

Follow DentalBuzz on Social Media