On being a dentist...

I spent the weekend doing some  continuing education for dentistry so I can renew my California dental license.  Derek's work is so busy and his hours are so unpredictable that we decided it would just be too stressful for everyone to try and manage two careers and, fortunately, I love being home with the boys. It stirred up some mixed emotions for me.  While I was in San Francisco for two days, I realized that I do kind of miss working, but that I really enjoy being home with my boys and I'm glad I can spend time with them when they're so little.  Also, I sat through a 6 hour lecture on dental papilla- you know, that little tiny piece of pink gums in between your teeth?  There is no way that was not going to be boring.  Perhaps I can start working again when the kids are in school- we'll see.   Anyway, it got me thinking of some of the crazy things I did as a brand new dentist.

For a few months after dental school I put in my time doing temp work.  It wasn't glamorous, but it was good experience while I looked for a permanent job.  And by putting in my time, I mean I worked on people who were doing time.  One of my first jobs required me to drive miles and miles to a random clinic out in the middle of nowhere.  I was only a few months out of school and still a little nervous about working on "real" patients.  Imagine my horror when  I got there and was told I would be working on inmates from the local prison!  They had two of them waiting for me in the dental chair.  There they were, wearing orange jumpsuits and handcuffs.  Well, the last thing you want to do, especially as a brand new dentist, is hurt someone who is serving twenty for some unknown reason.  I gulped a little and went in there and started my exam.  They ended up being surprisingly friendly (I think they were just glad to get out of their cell for a little while- even to go to the dentist) and I just hoped they were all in for embezzlement or something and tried to forget all those prison break movies I had seen.  I got them treated without any of us freaking out and considered the day a success.

My last day of temp work was not the inmates.  It was the downtown clinic in Seattle.  The downtown clinic offered dental service to everyone- especially people off of the street who were looking for care.  I had been working at that clinic for a couple of weeks, extracting some truly disgusting molars, when one morning I overheard the receptionist talking to the hygienist.  She was saying, "I heard that J is out of the hospital."  I jumped into the conversation, and it turned out that several months ago some crazy woman had come into the clinic and stabbed a dental assistant!  Luckily, she recovered and was fine, but I was pretty shaken to hear that someone had been attacked at the clinic.  I went out to lunch.  When I came back, a patient was waiting for me in the examining room.  I went in to do the exam, and the first thing she said was "I want you to take out all my teeth!  They all hurt!"  I did an exam and couldn't find much wrong with her teeth.  I told her I really couldn't extract perfectly good teeth.  She jumped up out of the chair, slammed all my instruments down on the tray and screamed "TAKE OUT ALL MY $@** TEETH!"  Security came and took the lady out.  The receptionist came over to me and said "Gee, she sounded just like that lady who stabbed the assistant."

That was my last day doing temp work.

Fortunately I found a job working at a public health clinic treating primarily kids which I really enjoyed.  I had lots of adventures there, but none as harrowing as my temporary work experiences.  Now I'm up to my ears in diapers and park dates and toddler stuff.  It's kind of fun to remember those crazy dental days!