11/25/08

OMG, I can't believe after this I'll only have one semester left of clinic. I don't know if I'll be ready to be a *real* hygienist? It's a very scary thought. I saw my mockboard and then the really fun class III from last week. I finished both and got lots of LA experiences. I also passed off my blood glucose, periodontal file (they were very useful) and an LA PE. It was a good last day!

11/20/08

Yay, I can't believe it was the last day of VA this semester! I really became fond of Connie, and hope next semester is as great. Even though I had a no-show at 8am, there was a 9:30 pt scheduled. Let me tell you, this lady definately tried my patience and sanity. The first test was when I tried to take out her dentures. (she had a total of 3 teeth). She took one look at the cup full of water and a denture tablet and freaked out. "No, I'm not putting my dentures in THAT stuff!" "Last time they used that, it went right through me and I pooped my pants in the elevator!" It took everything I had not to laugh so hard I would drop the cup. Next she was telling me that a doctor in Phoenix was trying to kill her using radiation. Can you guess how the x-rays went?? It wasn't very fun then, but I'm sure I'll laugh about it for months...

11/18/08

In light of the coming Thanksgiving holiday, I decided to make a happy, grateful blog. I am thankful for Claire for offering her class III pt to me after screening him in the am. As I predicted, my class III test from south america didnt come. I finished my test on him and it was awesome how much freaking calculus he had! I mean, I had to change suctions 2x. It was truly the most I have ever seen! I wish I could say I was thankful for oraqix, but I'm not. It gives pts who really need LA an excuse. It is only a small bandaid and made my job harder today. Next time, I'm poking him... Anyway, back to the thankful part. I am thankful for wonderful classmates that always find ways to help me!

11/13/08

I was the CA at WSU today, and I can't lie, it wasn't fun. One particular person made it crappy. I enjoy helping other people, that is the best part about being the CA, but it sucks when your 'boss' is a control freak. Anyways, I'll probably get kicked out of the program for that one, but it's the truth.

11/11/08

I had another round of bad luck, my mockboard was scheduled to come in the PM so I could finish her, but she no-showed. I saw a 1b in the morning and he was really cute. I wanted to pass off my caries risk assessment PE and it was really funny watching him spit in a cup for 5 minutes. I didn't feel so nervous after that.

11/6/08

At least I had a productive morning at the VA today, because I didn't have a pt in the afternoon. I don't get very upset about no-shows here, because it's not a personal attack on you. You didn't spend time or energy calling them and hoping for them to come. In the morning I saw a class III and passed off my periochip and subgingival irrigation PEs. (P.S. Those canula's were made for horses, I could hardly fit them in a pocket). I realized that I defiantely prefer arestin over periochip.

11/4/08

Today we had a lab in the am for blood glucose and subgingival irrigation. Even though I have done blood glucose many times as a cna, it was a good refresher. In the afternoon I saw a man that came with his family. Julie saw his daughter. He was one of my class III tests, and had a ton of calculus. He was from South America, and his eyes were so green. He was a good patient, but I don't know if he'll come back.

10/28/08

Today was a nice, easy day. I saw an easy class II in the morning and then a really nice class V in the afternoon. It was an added bonus that they both spoke English and have been to the clinic many times before this. I wish everday could be this carefree...

10/9/08

Today I saw 4 patients! It was nuts and I didn't feel very good, but I had to forget that I wanted to puke and just keep going. Plus, all the girls in my pod and clinic are so sweet and helped me more than they realized. They were life-savers. In the morning I saw a 7 year old boy who was so well-mannered. I wish all the kids I saw were as cooperative and sweet. I passed off my diagnodent and sealant PE. Then I did an OD/mockboard screening on a Hispanic lady and she qualified! 13 'clicks' in the LL quad, yay! In the afternoon, I saw a class 2 who only had one quad left to scale. It was really cool because I gave my first real injection on her, an IA and long buccal. It was so awesome! My last patient was a 10 year old boy who was also very sweet. We did 2 BWX and got him finished pretty quick, mostly because I was mentally done for the day. Longest day of my life, at least it was productive!

CA@VA

Holy accronyms, CA at the VA and TA and... I always felt excited last year to be the CA, but this year I wish I could use the time to see patients. It was a crazy day, one of the students was 1 1/2 hours late because she slept in, so I took him back and started an OD, plus helping everybody else chart and re-stocking. I love staying busy at least. It was good to get to know some other girls I usually don't see very much!

9/30/08

I can't believe it's already the last day of september! This whole year has flown by way too fast! Today both of my patients came AND on time!! They were both 5's but it was good to get some practice cleaning around bridges and crowns. They are freaking plaque traps.

9/23/08

My am pt cancelled, but his wife showed up instead, which was good but she was a 1b. I already have an excess of 1b's. I took some really good BWX, which I was excited about because I feel like it's taken forever to feel adequate in radiology.

9/15/08

Today was pretty productive, I passed off 2 PEs and got a FMX done. 3 quads of a 2 and an od on a 2. It was good considering my 12:30 patient was an hour late because she walked here. (I gave her a ride home). I wish for one day, people could be on time and I could effectively comunicate with them. Every patient since the beginning of the semester is spanish-speaking only.

9/11/08

Today I was at the VA, I love the VA because it is so laid back and you are able to learn alot more things when you are not so stressed out. I absolutely love Connie and I think it will so beneficial to come here every other week! I saw 3 patients today, a 1b, 5 and 2 quads of a 2. My class 2 was sooo sensitive, even the thought of my probe made him cringe. It was a good experience though.

My first post

So the last 2 weeks have been really bad. I feel so frustrated because not ONE patient that I have scheduled have been able to come. Either they cancelled, no-showed or were over an hour late. I must have done something awful to bring all this bad luck on myself! My patient today was spanish-speaking and could not find the clinic, so at 9, I decided to go pick her up. Since she was late, she agreed to stay over the lunch break and I finished her by 1:30 because I had another pt scheduled at 1:30. I still had to take her home and my patient was late, so I figured it would be ok. I got back at 2pm and he had just left. What did he think? That it would take 10 min. to clean his teeth? Some people are just plain retarded (sorry McConaughy)...

Last clinic

So it is like a week later, but I wanted to talk about the last day of the semester. I saw a class II patient and finished 3 quads, but I can't begin to tell you how much better and more comfortable at scaling I feel. I don't feel like I'm trying to do it in the dark anymore. This semester was definately crazy and I am so looking forward to the summer, but I am really excited to come back to school and learn even more. HAGS everyone!(for Katie)

bad start, good finish

So today was a very important day: scale 1 quad of a III and 1 of a II and the rest a senior was screening for boards. He had already came in and had OD and x-rays. He no-showed!! I called everyone I could think of and then remembered that my room-mate Carly had come in one time for Jackie for an OD. She said she wanted to wait to be cleaned until I needed her, so today was the day. We did a pano (which I offered to pay for) and then cleaned her 4 quads. I guess I'll definatley have 65 quads, but I'm praying that that class II/III will come back. But at least all I have left to do is: 2 PE's, 1 quad III, 3 quads II. I think that is manageable. I'm just counting down the days to where I can finally get some sleep and not worry whether or not my patient will show up the next day!

hectic squared

today was the craziest day as of yet, but i have alot of people who helped keep my sanity! first I saw a 5 year old boy who needed sealants on all but one of his 1st molars and since I am done with sealant requirements 3 others got to join in the fun... It was fun to watch everyone's different ways of doing things, but 3 people trading took up a good amount of time and I didn't get my second 1a seated until 9:55! Kristen, God bless her, was my biggest help today. She helped me set up and take down and was practically my assistant! Her second patient which was my second 1a's brother had to cancel so she was done early. I am so happy to be done with 1a's now and can get my class II's done.

"we have a gag situation"

Today was my first experience with a patient gagging in radiology. Salt really does help though. I thought I was going to come out of there with a fresh coat of barf. He was a 1B, but a hard 1B and it definately took me the entire appointment to finish him. Another first for me today was scaling sheet calculus, which was on 23-26B. I don't know how people can miss their front teeth with their toothbrush enough times to where calculus will form, but I never cease to be amazed. At least I'm done with 1b's and BWX now. Onward...

stress free, well sort of...

I found my last class II patient today which was such a relief!! Now I either have finished or have scheduled all my requirements for the semester, now hopefully they all show up! Right now I'm really doubting if I'll get the "65 quads for an A," but there's still time... As far as everything else goes, I still need 1 BXW, 1 pano, 1 sealant, 1 vacation (I mean...), and 5 PE's left for the semester. Wedesday I am seeing a guy from my old job who could possibly be a class II, but I really have no idea. Maybe me and another girl could switch out if he is, I guess we'll see...

who needs a therapist? just visit your local hygiene student

So I didn't know that therapist was in our job description, but today I found out it should be! My patient was a 60 year old lady who had a story for everything, I swear I didn't think I would finish her after it took almost an hour to take x-rays. She was hilarious, but after a while it was frustrating. I ended up finishing her (3 quads II and 1 quad 1b) but it was definately an experience. I definately met my goals this week, but I just need to keep crankin' out quads until the end of the semester.

2-in-1

Today I made up a clinic session for when I was sick, so I was there all day. It gave me a little glimpse to what a real hygiene job would be like sans the overlooking teachers and ugly blue labcoats... It was a crazy day but I got alot accomplished: 4 quads Ib, 2 quads II, 4 PEs and 1 set BWX. I still have 1 quad to finish on that class II which is kind of irritating considering the number of clinics we have left. Carter said he should have been a III, too late now though. Anyway, I def. have my work cut out for me on him. Wednesday I am seeing a patient Cassandra gave me in exchange for a class IV, hopefully she's the II she said she was. I am excited to get all my requirements done; hopefully that will happen soon!

mommy

I was so glad that my mom could come and visit me and come to the clinic. She was my very first patient, so I already had finished her od. I was planning on passing off a ton of PEs but my instructor only had time for one, intraoral camera. It was kind of maddening just sitting there for hours waiting for pod wrap when my instructor didn't want to pass off anymore PEs. Oh well, 1 more 1b down and 1 PE less to do next time. I was really surprised at how clean her teeth were and she told me that she uses a sonicare toothbrush. I'm excited to get the free one...

kiddos

Today was so fun, Kristen had about 4 of us see a family. I got to see an adorable 5 year old who made me want hundreds of kids! I definately learned the hard way not to take digital bwx with kids even if you use the smaller sensor. It was just too hard, anyway it was so nice to finish somebody in an hour or less and get my first 1a requirement. I should have used him for my exam patient, but at least now I have some practice for next time. I'm so excited for spring break, i need to recharge...

Class II

I was glad to see my class III's son today who ended up being a class II. This was the first time I had seen hyperplastic gums in person. I felt so bad because even probing was painful for him. I didn't get to scaling because I did a FMX and BWX, but I gave him some peridex and he will be back after spring break. It was interesting to see the calculus on the films. It worked great as an OHI tool for him to actually see what was causing all the pain and inflammation. I know that he will have to get numb, but that will be good because then I can just go to work and get everything. I'm excited for wednesday, I see my first IA!

exam

So I have to say today was freaking awesome! It was just an all-around good day. I took 4 digital BWX that didn't need retakes, scaled all 4 quads of my new IB exam patient and passed off my selective polishing PE and got him out the door before 10:45am. I was so excited because I didn't miss ONE spot, that is like a record for me... I'm also excited because he wants to come back and get sealants. I've been noticing that I use alot of extra-oral fulcrums especially on 2nd and 3rd molars. It feels comfortable and just WORKS. I wish everyday went as smoothly as today; clinic is definately a roller coaster from day to day. Monday I am seeing my class III's 30 year old son and am hoping for a class II {good for me, bad for him :( } and pass off my universal scaling PE.

bittersweet

So today was ok, my class III came back to finish the last 3 quads, but for some reason these 3 quads were really difficult. It seriously took me the entire time to scale her and I missed alot of spots. I really don't feel confident when a certain professor is my instructor. Her thoughts and explanations are so hard to follow and when I asked her to pass my ultrasonic PE off, she got half-way through and then just left. I didnt care though, I just gave myself 3's and 4's and turned it in. She can deal with it how she wants. I'm such a brat i know!! I just feel like there's only so much I can do personally to succeed if others are not trying to help my position. I know she means well, but I can never follow her thought-process. Anyway, I don't need anymore quads of a class III! On to class II's and Ia's...

class III baybay

I am so relieved today! Not only did my patient show up, she was a class III. This was my first real experience using my ultrasonic and dealing with heavy calculus supra and sub. I took 4 vert. BWX, but needed some supplementals for her 3rds and passed off anterior scaling. I almost gagged when I was using my H 6/7 on her lower anterior linguals and calculus was flying all over the room. I must say it was cool though feeling like I'm actually 'cleaning' something. I only finished 1 quad(LL), but started on her UL. She seemed really compliant and like she would be willing to come back. I can't wait to finish her, way funner than a IB.

yay for a break!

Well I don't want to talk about or remember monday, so I will talk about today! We went over removable prosthesis, diagnodent, insurance coding and ultrasonics. I personally found the ultrasonic instruction to be the most helpful. We had really only gone over and practiced using them once before this but alot of patients could have benefitted from using it. I feel more confident now, and will be especially grateful when my class III comes in march 3rd. Today was boring, but pretty helpful and a nice break from seeing a patient. I really noticed that you have to make physical contact with the calculus to have any effect on it (at least on the typodonts and fake calculus). I also noticed how much strength it takes to hold and instrument with an ultrasonic.

Another IB

So today went alright. Although my patient was 20 minutes late, I still got alot done. I got 4 pas and 2 quads (almost 3, but not quite). I'm kinda mad that I didn't finish him up, he's only a IB. Here are some excuses I'm allowing myself to tell myself (haha): 1. He was late, 2. His bp was 140/80 at first, so I waited for it to go down. 3. Although he didn't have a ton of calc., the stuff he did have was really hard to get off. I can come up with a gillion excuses, but usually it just comes down to me not having enough experience or organizational skills! :) I guess these are my goals for next time...

Today was great!

I was so happy about how today went! First of all, my patient showed up, on time and I finished 4 quads of a IB. Such a major improvement from last week... She had a baby girl about 3 weeks ago and brought her to the appointment. At first I was a little nervous about how we would work around/keep her safe, but she just slept on her mom's stomach while I worked on her. She was such an ANGEL, big brown eyes and the longest eyelashes I have seen on a baby! Although I missed a couple of spots on her max. molars interproximally, I was glad that I got everything off on the lower anteriors where I always miss stuff. I passed off my explorer PE and wednesday hope to pass off anterior and posterior scaling.

No luck atal..

So today I had a funny feeling that my patient wouldn't show, I was right. Damn the weather. She was a class II, which makes it worse. Me and jackie got to trek around campus hoping some nice person would agree to be tortured and then have to pay for it in addition to missing their class. We had no luck. I passed off my sharpening PE and sharpened the rest of my instruments, which by the way, I haven't even hardly used!! I was a total waste of space today. How can our grade be so dependent on other people??? Hopefully next week goes better, I can't trust anyone...

I finally scaled!

Yay, After stressing about not getting a patient today, my boyfriend kindly came in and I finished all 4 quads! It feels good getting some quads completed and some experience with calculus. Today went more smoothly than I had imagined and I felt like I could actually detect calculus. Although I missed a couple of spots, i felt pretty good about the appointment. Next monday I am a c.a. and then wednesday I am seeing a returning class II (od finished at last appointment). I was planning on passing off my sharpening pe, but of course, no instructors were available to help. That is the only complaint I have about the day...

2 patients in one day

Today was nuts! My first patient who just wanted to get a pano taken happened to have a long health history and complications etc, but I finished one of my two pano requirements and that makes me happy! My second patient ended up qualifying to be my Class III and that made me even happier! Although I though I lost my probe a couple of times in her 6, 7,8 mm pockets and the amount of sub calculus she had made it difficult to get around, I finished her OD. Ive already done 4 ODs this semester and NO SCALING! I need to get on that. I really need some good experience on easier patients before my class III comes March 3rd. I still feel unorganized at times, but it is getting easier.

1/14/08

Today was quite the day. Besides my initial patient cancelling 2 hours before her appointment, I found another patient that had to leave early. Oh well, I was lucky to find another person to come in. She had mild perio and so it was my first experience with that. It's definately a different feeling when your probe keeps going down, it's hard to orient yourself after 4-5mm. I need to get my loupes adjusted so I can wear them, that will definately help alot. Everyday I feel more confident on some things like x-rays and HHx, but when there is alot of existing dental work I get overwhelmed with charting it all. I don't feel as confident with perio statements as I thought I did. I need to go over descriptive words and phrases. Today turned out good considering...

1st patient-2nd semester

So I thought it would be a little easier having my mom come in to the clinic, but it actually made me more nervous because she is the one I try so hard to impress not these people I have never met before! She reassured me, but I made many stupid mistakes. I guess I learned from them, like: Chart skin lesions as part of your extra-oral, posterior PAs are supposed to be horizontal (duh!?) and chart every detail about any medication someone is taking. I didn't even start on a quad today because for one the snow was horrible and the doctor didn't even get here until 8:30 and plus I took forever in radiology. I can't wait to feel like this is a routine and I'm still not guessing on most things!

First day, new semester

Today was just as overwhelming as the first day of clinic last semester. After a month-long break, I'm pretty rusty. I'm scared that I have a patient coming on Tuesday. It's my mom, so that shouldn't be so stressful but I am still nervous. I feel really uncomfortable about using the ultrasonic, but after I learn it I think it will be one of my greatest assets. The biggest thing I am nervous about is paperwork and scheduling patients. I really hope my chair is full every clinic.