Dawson Quicknotes

Powerful Communication with Digital Photography

By Stephen Miller, DDS
Assistant Faculty Member of The Dawson Academy

During The Dawson Academy’s Treatment Planning Functional Esthetic Excellence Course, we teach students to integrate the information and records gathered during the New Patient Exam. I have noticed that a recurring issue for doctors is how to effectively bridge the gap between their records and the patient’s wants, needs, objections, and confronting problems.

The answer lies in Digital Photography. This a fantastic tool can be used to address the frustrations of patient communication and ownership of the patient’s dental issues.  Our society has developed into a society of visual learners, where a picture is worth a 1000 words. Doctors can use these pictures to create a frame of reference of their patient’s overall dental health. In conjunction with asking patients open-ended questions, digital photography is a great communication tool for both new and existing patients.

In my office, the clinical staff takes 4 screening photographs: full face, smile, upper and lower occlusal. These four photos are quickly printed on high quality photo paper. The patients are given the photos and are asked,” Tell me what you see?” Then we shut-up and listen to the patient. This process ranks as one of the most important parts of the new patient process.

This exchange helps define the patient’s impression of their dentition, and gets them to talk about their own dental needs, which guides us to our next step. If the patient is ready and shows signs of instability, then we have them return for a set of full photographic records, which is laid out in The Dawson Academy Photographic Series.
   
From these photographs we can then review every aspect of the mouth on a flat screen monitor.
This is invaluable for:

• Diagnosis – allows the dentist a different perspective
• Communication
• Understanding and documentation of issues and conditions
• Leading to more patient ownership and shared responsibility

The next time we meet with the patient, we have a portfolio of before and after photographs highlighting the answers to the problems we are facing, and allowing possibility thinking and visualization of the end result.  The aspect of digital photography is really one of our best tools for communication in dentistry.  Now while I love my neatly mounted study models, those are best used for understanding, and not for the generating patient excitement.

Getting started is easy. I recommend a pre-programmed quality digital camera for dentistry, a quality HP Photosmart Inkjet printer and a Dawson Photographic Training DVD. This entire investment can be made for under $2500, but the results will more than pay for themselves in no time. With these tools in your practice, your team will be taking great photos and bridging the treatment communication gap with your patients.

Free CE Podcast: 10 Tips for Predictable Adhesive Success

On Wednesday, July 14th, Dr. John Cranham, Clinical Director and Partner of The Dawson Academy, presented a webinar 10 Tips for Predictable Adhesive Success hosted by Dental Products Report and sponsored by Ivoclar Vivadent. Over 1000 dentists registered for this event and to date, more than 500 have viewed the program.

During the 1 hour program, Dr. Cranham discussed which adhesives work best for which specific situations and how to use them to eliminate post-op sensitivity and achieve predictable results. The presentation focused on issues with 4th and 5th generation products and the latest information on the 6th and 7th generation products. The webinar was filled with excellent tips and techniques you can utilize immediately to improve your patients’ experience and was highlighted with video demonstrations.

If you missed the webinar, you can still watch it at www.dentalproductsreport.com/resources/webinars and receive 1 dental continuing education credit. Webinars have become a popular method for delivering dental clinical continuing education because of the ability to view the material at a time and place convenient to you.

What are the keys to insure the successful restoration of functionally beautiful anterior teeth?

by Scott Finlay, DDS, FAGD, FAACD

The baby boomers are coming of age. This “Silver Tsunami” represents the single largest demographic age group and controls over 75% of the financial assets in the United States.  They are educated and want to look and feel younger.  If they are healthy and if they have made it to age 65, they have a 95% chance of making it to 90.  They come to our practices asking for enhancements to their smiles that are beginning to show the cumulative signs of dental deterioration, or what Dr. Dawson has taught us as “the signs and symptoms of occlusal instability”. They are asking for veneers, Invisalign and whitening. How can we confidently provide them with treatment solutions for their anterior teeth that deliver the comfort, health and esthetics that they are demanding?

As dentists we can be lured by the promises of material advancements with the introduction of bullet proof ceramics and adhesion products that could have been pan handled by Billy Mays. We are often receiving manufacturing hype that is unfiltered or that has not been refereed. At The Dawson Academy, we offer a continuum of learning in our core curriculum that specifically outlines the protocol that will insure predictable, durable results that offer the absolute best esthetics possible.  This protocol is not left to chance.  This continium of core learning builds upon itself and culminates with the hands on program Restoring Anterior Teeth (Application of the Functional Matrix). This protocol should be applied to every case, reguardless of the magnitude of treatment involved.  Our core principle in the restoration of anterior teeth is based upon the simple principle that dental esthetics can only be a mirror of the relative health of the overall stomatognathic system.

Cases are managed in four purposeful stages:

1. We begin with complete records and move through our “2D Treatment Planning” outlined by the 16 steps in the Functional Esthetic Form with excellent, reproducible and consistent photography.
2. Next we evaluate the implications in “3D” with accurately mounted models and begin to alter these intended changes in contour through our diagnostic wax up through our 10 steps to Functional Esthetic Excellence.  This now creates our Dental Blue print, with which we can fabricate stents to take chair side to insure that our restorative design can be accomplished.
3. As we move chair side, we can now predictably reproduce the design changes that have been created in our “3D” modeling.  This is one of the most critical stages in the process as we now have the opportunity to prove that the prototypes that we have designed are in harmony with the functional, phonetic and esthetic parameters for that patient.  We cannot move forward from this point until this has been accomplished.
4. Finally, through the use of our approved provisionals and a very specific lab communication protocol, the definitive restorations can be fabricated, evaluated intraorally, detailed and finally delivered.

By following these steps and modulating the results with the concepts The Dawson Academy presents relative to the Smile Design Matrix, dentists can provide with confidence, solutions for patients that are predictable, evidence based and durable within the parameters of responsible esthetics.

Splint Therapy DVD for Everyday Dentistry

Often, we will hear educators discuss managing tough restorative problem cases with a final comment, “We’d recommend working through splint therapy before starting a difficult case like this one”, or “and of course, this is a case where you’ll want to use a splint at night”. What are the options when it comes to splints?

There are three basic designs of splints used for different scenarios of patient presentation. Do you know the different designs and when each would be preferred ?

This video developed by Great Lakes Orthodontics will give you an overview to help get you started.

This comprehensive DVD covers:
• The Basic TMJ Exam
• Differential Diagnosis & Treatment Options
• The Importance of Good Records
• Fabrication, Placement & Adjustment
• Guidelines & Troubleshooting
• Communication with Patients & Insurance

To order this DVD from Great Lakes Orthodontics, please click here.