Dear Eva, I just got home from the dentist and am distressed about the lack of attention my dentist and his staff pay to oral cancer screenings. Is there is a way for you to help? I like my dentist and his hygienist does a great job, but it all stops there. It is noted in my chart that I want an oral cancer screening. …
#1 On Your Priority List: You
Some dental professionals do a cursory screening; some do a very thorough one. There is no standard or required level of quality, except one: an oral cancer screening should be performed at every dental check-up. I spoke with a dentist (about 50 years old) who told me she never learned how to perform an oral cancer screening in dental school so she doesn’t …
4
The Complaining Patient: Tumor or Trauma
In the 1996 “Seinfeld” episode called “The Package,” Elaine is blackballed from being seen in medical offices and tries to steal her own medical records to erase her “difficult patient” status. I had a similar experience. I had been seen by one doctor in an Oral & Maxillofacial office for the non-healing sore on my tongue that was becoming more painful. The …
Recommended 6-Month Oral Cavity Service: Physical And Financial Consequences
My 42 year old friend who had dental insurance through his job, had not been to his dentist for a checkup in two years. Just a week prior to his dental checkup, his new Toyota Forerunner hit 5,000 miles and was scheduled for the recommended 5,000 mile service. The $30,000 question is WHY did he wait 24 months for the recommended 6-month oral cavity …
HPV Herd Immunity: Provide It Free or Mandate It
In Australia, 70% of girls turning 15 have received all three doses of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. In the United States, 38% of girls 13 to 17 have received all three doses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Seven years ago in 2007, Australia began providing the HPV vaccine FREE to girls 12 to 18 in a school-based …