It's been a while since I've posted anything on here! For those curious, I'm currently in the middle of 3rd year- been an exciting and welcomed change to all the lab and book coursework, and actually feeling like a real dentist. We transitioned into the clinic this past summer, slowly learning the ropes and learning the ins and out of clinic. I'm much happier to feel like I'm helping people and learning so much on the job now. Pretty stressful transition- you get thrown in and then have to sink or swim. The summer started off with the white coat ceremony, where the 3rd year students are awarded their white coats to symbolize the transition into the profession. Currently staying very busy treating patients- we see 2 patients a day, one in the morning, one in the afternoon. Sometimes you can fit in 2 patients in one appointment if you're efficient- normally you won't have the time to do that. Every person in the class is on their own schedule now- patients need different treatment plans, so one peer might be working on a ton of removable whereas another would be doing crowns, operative, etc. A lot of scary first times doing procedures you have never done on a live patient- but we all get through it; first injections, first filling, first crown prep, muddling through the procedure of making a denture, root canals, etc. A lot of it is luck of the draw unfortunately- have to just go with the flow and do what you can with what you have on the patients you're assigned. I'm hopeful to get out of school on time and hopefully get all my requirements. Currently I'm on a 6 week oral surgery rotation- been exciting learning how to extract teeth and add another skill to the tool set. In addition, we complete out rotations to health care clinics in the KC area in the 3rd year, and I'll go out on that in early March for a week. Exciting!
This next fall (D4), the Army requires us to apply for AEGD/specialty programs. I do not plan on specializing at the time, but am hopeful for a slot at an AEGD (why not...great education, opportunity to learn from the best). There are 6 different 1 yr AEGD programs (Fort Campbell KY, Fort Benning GA, Fort Lewis WA, Fort Sill OK, Fort Jackson SC, and Fort Carson CO) , and I think 3 2 yr AEGDs (Fort Hood TX, Fort Bragg NC, and Hawaii). At this time it is difficult to plan out at all where I'll be going, but I'm ready just to ride the wave and enjoy the journey. Being realistic, I may not get picked up right out of school, but who says I can't get some experience and go later. I will post more information for those curious/want help on the application process- I'm learning a lot of it currently myself. As far as I know it is a lot of paperwork/putting your packet together for the board, writing a letter of intent, and working with your recruiter to ensure you have all the paper pushing in a row. Probably not a bad idea to have a current DA photo on hand as well. God Bless!
My sister and I at a commissioning ceremony at our alma mater. She will soon be an Army PA!
Volunteering at Give Kids A Smile- delivering dental services to children in KC area
White Coat Ceremony!
