An educational oasis in Scottsdale

Few have ever complained of a lack of continuing education opportunities in dentistry. But to sense the spirit at the Grand Opening Celebration of the Scottsdale Center for Dentistry April 25, to stand in the gleaming lobby and witness the hundreds of clinical and industry luminaries assembled in one place, to view the satisfaction on the faces of these people as they watched top-flight didactic and hands-on education taking place in the most technologically sophisticated and comfortable learning environment ever to grace dentistry, was to believe that previous learning opportunities were sparse at best.

The opening of the Center is a bold move, and, many say, a big risk. The facility itself represents a capital investment of many, many millions of dollars, backed by Mercer Advisors and born of the brain and vision of Mercer CEO Imtiaz Manji and the passion for excellence and integrity of its new Dean, Dr. Gordon Christensen. Besides the financial investment at stake are the reputations of these two men, who have logged an equally hefty number of hours and miles building those reputations by spreading their visions for excellence in the clinical and business practices of dentistry.

I believe the risk will pay off. The Opening Celebration drew a Who’s Who of clinical leadership, all of whom were impressed with not just the facility, but the mission and vision that enlivens it. Many already have signed on as faculty, and many more are in negotiations.

Throughout two days of presentations, one day for the dental laboratory industry and one for clinical leaders, the focus was on the Center’s three-tier promise: To provide the highest-quality learning environment both in terms of faculty and technological infrastructure; to uphold integrity and honesty in education; and to expose all who study there to a best-practices approach to clinical and business pursuits that focuses on conservative, minimally-invasive treatment that honors each patient’s individual needs and wants. In his introductory comments, Dr. Christensen referred to the Center as “the people’s center,” an institution that will serve as a second dental school to prepare new dentists and update experienced dentists with the tools, techniques and principles to provide the best treatment to all patients, not just those who can afford $30,000 cases.

“There has been a disturbing trend towards over-treatment in our profession,” Dr. Christensen said. “As a result, we have fallen from the top of the list in terms of the public’s trust, to the middle. We have the ability, the tools and the technology to treat our patients with the highest integrity and still do very well. What is missing is the willingness.”

By combining Dr. Christensen’s passion for excellent dentistry, rooted in integrity, with Mr. Manji’s focus on teaching the business systems that allow dentists to thrive by treating each patient to the best care possible, the Center has the brain- and heart-power to make this reality. All in attendance agreed this is both laudable and achievable. The challenge will be convincing dentists that it is worth it.

That’s where my colleagues in the dental media can help. As the clinical leaders in attendance were challenged to uphold the teaching of excellence and integrity, so the dental journals and online information sources need to spread the message that practicing with integrity is not only possible, but profitable. We can keep presenting clinical research data unrelated to the work most dentists conduct and shallowly over-hyping the next big profit builder without context. Or we can provide thoughtful, relevant content that informs and educates the profession. We can devote our space and attention to information that is, as Dr. Christensen called it, “evidence-based and practice-focused.”

Our challenge in the dental media is to find excellence wherever it exists and use our unique positions to widen the audience, share and democratize the intelligence we find, so that all in the dental profession know where to find it. We can use our pulpits to heap shallow praise on the latest and greatest, or we can encourage and empower dental professionals to nurture and develop excellence for the benefit of their careers, their teams and, most importantly, their patients.

A new day for dental education

Less than two weeks now separate us from one of the most exciting events in dentistry: the grand opening of The Scottsdale Center for Dentistry. Having closely followed the development of this center from the initial glint in founder Imtiaz Manji's eye to finished facility, I can confidently predict that the day will come when the continuing education landscape in dentistry will be delineated as "Before Scottsdale" and "After Scottsdale."

For those who don't know, The Scottsdale Center is a $50-million, state-of-the-art dental learning facility adjacent to the prestigious Fairmont Scottsdale Princess Resort. Its location alone would be reason enough for many dentists to plan a working vacation around the site. But the Center also would be worth the trip if it were located in Dubuque. The 65,000 square-foot facility is equipped like no other learning center. From its fully wired auditorium to its impressively outfitted learning center and operatories, no effort or expense has been spared to make the facility a world-leader in offering the what Mr. Manji proudly refers to as "the finest broad-based, unbiased, and complete continuing education for the dental profession."

Features of the Center include a 278 stadium-style auditorium equipped for filming and broadcasting, a fully functional six-operatory "dental practice of the future," a 10-operatory and 36-lab-bench training facility and many other innovations and amenities to help make the Center among the most cutting edge teaching facilities in the world.

More importantly, the Center is dedicated to truth and integrity in continuing education. Unlike other facilities that subscribe to a single clinical philosophy, the Center welcomes all schools of thought across all disciplines. Under the leadership of Dean Dr. Gordon Christensen, a man of unique character and integrity in a profession awash in murky relationships, the Center’s goal is to provide dentists, dental specialists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, and dental technicians with ideal choices about both the subjects and the depth of their continuing education. Given the list of clinicians the Center has drawn to its faculty, I believe this goal is easily, for the first time, within reach.

I will be attending the Grand Opening Gala and will cover the event here and on Dentalcompare.com. Be sure to check back; and be sure to add the Scottsdale Center to your education calendar.

Toothpaste art in NYC

So I'm wandering through SoHo on a recent trip to NYC, when I pass a grafitti covered door that's vaguely inviting me to come inside. The sign appears to be for a shop... though I'm not entirely sure. Climbing the steps, I'm still not sure if I'm about to enter a hyper-trendy shop, an after-hours club that's still going from the night before, or a crack house. But, alas, after a long flight of creaky stairs and a couple of turns, I find myself in Kiosk.

Featuring no more than two dozen seemingly random items from a single country (the country changes every few months, according to the owner's travel schedule), the blank space highlights the simplicity of the items proffered. Furniture shims, chocolate, toothpaste... it takes the attention of a gallery-goer to let the theme eventually sink in. These are items that are perfect in their simplicity, everyday items that are so taken for granted by the natives that no one would ever think of exporting them.

Sparingly set on simple shelves, with thoughtful note-card descriptions, the mundane items become art, commerce and cultural anthropology all in one. And you can buy it. Of particular note to me, of course, was the Ajona Toothpaste, which the owner described as, "A German punch in the face!" Only $8 a tube. Yet, I was happy to pay it. Because while dozens of high-end stores have no problem selling high-design product that's no better than generic, here was a curator who was willing to devote rather expensive floor space to a rather generic product made art through the simple act of her observation.

I finally got around to reading the store's manifesto: "We opened the store to provide an antidote to overdesign," it read. "We consider the items we stock to be straight-forward and beautiful for their simplicity and directness. Their beauty is sometimes hard to see in today's oversaturated market. Our motivation is to shed some light on their quiet perfection."

For a stumbled-upon store, Kiosk is a true work of found art.

Action for access

In reference to my post below, there are statements, and then there are Statements. The National Dental Association, an organization uniquely dedicated to access issues, last month released a Statement of grace and fire regarding the recent deaths related to dental issues of not one, but now two children.

"Many dental organizations and media sources weighed in on the events, citing 'a step backward for the nation’s health'," says NDA Executive Director Robert S. Johns. "It is the position of the National Dental Association that there may never have been a step forward, only that the information age has publicized this issue to a greater audience, and the public is now as energized as it is informed."

To paraphrase the rest of his letter is to do it a grave injustice. I urge everyone to read it in its entirety here.

Then, contact the NDA to find out how you can support the 8th Annual NDA on Capitol Hill Day, May 10 in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room B339 – B340. The NDA is extending an invitation to NDA leaders and members, healthcare professionals, Deans and alumni from Howard University’s College of Dentistry and the University of Maryland Dental School, dental students and VIPs.

To take the fight for sensible access to care directly to your Senator or Congressional Representative: House of Representatives www.house.gov; and Senate, www.senate.gov.

For more information, contact kgaines@ndaonline.org or call 202.588.1697, extension 16.

I also have it on strong authority that at least one dental company is doing exactly what I recommended below: Working to establish a direct line specifically to connect underserved patients with dentists who will treat them.

More as I learn it.

On tragedy

Interesting that the ADA should refer to the recent death of a Maryland boy from a brain infection tied to an abscessed tooth as illustrating "why organized dentistry—all of us, working together—must stay focused on trying to improve that system." The ADA goes on to state: "We’ve taken several steps in response to the death, including a statement that’s on ADA.org and an op-ed we’ve provided to state dental societies. In the best of worlds, we can all hope to focus on this tragedy to leverage our profile as advocates for the under served."

A statement. Thank God. I have covered the ADA for years, and, while I agree it is a worthy organization, there are two areas in which it has continually frustrated me. First on the list is its inability to marshall support for access to care. Second is its refusal to market on behalf of dentistry. (More on that below.) Beyond, "we need more money from Medicaid," the answers seem to come sparingly from 211 E. Chicago Ave. I know this is a complex issue, and sponsoring legislation is important. And, on that front, thanks to the ADA for supporting legislation.

Sen. Jeff Bingaman's reintroduction of a bill calling for federal grants for state Medicaid and SCHIP programs to provide dental care to low-income children is smart, and it's supported by the ADA. The bill aims at encouraging dentists to work in low-income regions by offering dentists bonuses if at least 25 percent of their practice consists of SCHIP and Medicaid patients. But let's get past the more-money answer, can we please? I support dentists getting paid, but what we need here is real, grass-roots, old-fashioned caring and civic mindedness on the part of individual dentists.

Here's where the ADA can help:

1. Educate the public on oral health and the importance of regular dental care, including MARKETING dentistry from an oral-health/overall health standpoint and an esthetic standpoint. Thanks be to Discus Dental, 1-800-DENTIST, Invisalign and DEN-MAT for doing what the ADA should have been doing all along: getting people excited about dentistry.

2. Get dentists mobilized. There are myriad groups that facilitate dentists providing direct service. Work with them to connect dentists with programs such as The National Children's Oral Health Foundation, or, more importantly, their local affiliates. According to the ADA, Washington D.C. staff is meeting with lawmakers to find new answers. "Among new ideas discussed are a grant program to fund Mission of Mercy projects and tax credits for dentists who donate care. While these ideas are still in the rough-draft stage, we expect to work closely with Hill staff in the coming weeks on these and other proposals." Again, great; I hope it succeeds. But how about providing moral and civic leadership to get dentists serving even without tax credits. There are many dentists out there doing just that. Publicize them to their peers and network them. Devote part of ADA.org to create a volunteer clearinghouse, where dentists can connect directly with programs.

3. Stop patting your own back and honor the dentists, groups and dental manufacturers who are making a difference.

Tragedy is one of the most incorrectly- and overused words in the English language. A tragedy is when someone is led to his or death by his or her own flaw. This Maryland child's death is not a tragedy. It is negligence. The tragedy will be if the most powerful dental organization in the United States deteriorates through irrelevance to its constituents on both sides of the dental chair.

Best Magazines Ever

Congratulations to my former colleagues at Advanstar Dental Media on two fronts.

First, for their recent Neal Award for Best Start-up Publication for Modern Hygienist, a magazine that remains a source of extreme pride for me. My highest publishing career goal was to one day launch a successful magazine. Thanks to Advanstar, I got my opportunity with MH, and I firmly believe it is the best hygiene book out there.

Congrats to Christine Waring and her phenomenal design team; Maria Perno Goldie, MH's graceful and intelligent Editor; Thais Carter, whose spirit, wit and insight inform every page; Publisher and all-around good guy John Grasha; and Richard Fischer, the VP who believed and made it happen. Together they have created a magazine whose writing and overall look-and-feel perfectly capture my philosophy that there is no excuse for trade publications to subscribe to lower quality standards than news-stand pubs. After all, it's people's livelihood we're covering.

It's a philosophy I carry with me in my new position at Dentalcompare, the only enterprise I consider uniquely capable of serving dentists and the dental industry online with the same professionalism, integrity, commitment to excellence, spirit and technical sophistication that I have experienced at the best publishing houses. I came aboard two short months ago with the goal of creating THE online source for dental practice development. With the foundation of tools I inherited from the folks who built the site, it will be a short time indeed until we hit that goal.

For those who don't know (and I assume that's most of you) the Neal Award is the premiere award in business-to-business publishing, kind of the Pulitzer for trade magazines.

Second, congrats to Advanstar on its recent sale to buyout firm Veronis Suhler Stevenson for $1.142 billion. The new money says it will keep the current management team in place... a damn smart move, as Advanstar's upper ranks boast the brightest talent in the publishing and trade-show biz. I look forward to seeing how the infusion of cash, and, I'm sure, new spirit will make the best titles in dentistry even better.

CAD/CAM Curious?

If you're even remotely interested in CAD/CAM dental technology, be sure to check out Dentalcompare's April CAD/CAM showcase. We'll be featuring articles and interviews with the heavy hitters in this revolutionary field, as well as Webinars, product videos and all the product information you need on systems and materials, all in one place. Check it out at www.dentalcompare.com. And be sure to investigate last month's Endodontics Showcase.

In May, we'll be focusing on Implant technology. If you'd like to contribute an article, case-study, or just a short tip you've picked up, drop me an e-mail at sdiogo@dentalcompare.com.

And, if you'll be in or around Chicago on June 9, take advantage of your chance to attend the first ever Cad/Cam Congress. Join in as Dental Lab Products presents what promises to be a one-of-a-kind convergence of lab owners, technicians, leading manufacturers and industry thought leaders, designed to enlighten and educate you about the latest in laboratory CAD/CAM technology and materials.

Partying like a rockstar

While the talk and CE was great, one of the highlights of the Townie Meeting was definitely the "Party Like a Rockstar" party at the VooDoo Lounge, sponsored and thrown by our friends at 1-800-DENTIST. (That's me in the eye-liner, along with,from left, Pete Janicki and Dr. Tom Giacobbi of Dental Town, and Laura Clausen of 1-800-DENTIST). Besides being a great company with a great service that helps all dentists (whether they're members or not), these folks know how to throw a party. Slash, George Harrison and John Lennon (in full Sgt. Pepper's regalia), the Spice Girls and a whole lot of Elvises (Elvi?) were present for a raucous time. Best part was heading out later with George Harrison. Only in Vegas can a dentist walk around dressed up like that and barely get a second look.

Check back, as I'll be posting photos soon. And if you were there and have pics to share, e-mail them to me at sdiogo@dentalcompare.com.

Leaving Las Vegas

This time, hopefully, what happened in Vegas won't stay in Vegas.

I'm just wrapping up my visit to the Townie Meeting, which drew about 1,000 dentists and their team members to the entirely over-the-top Paris Hotel and Casino on the Vegas Strip, and I am, in a word, exhausted. But in a good way.

Rarely have I seen such an enthusiastic group at a dental event. In a field jam packed with shows and CE events, there's something about the Townie Meeting that just feels good. It's probably the fact that this is a community that has grown organically, with members drawn by the very human desire to interact with their peers. While most other meetings remain mired in tradition, stuffiness and politics, the Townies take over their meeting, casting off whatever doesn't work, building on what does, and owning the whole experience.

It epitomizes a trend I've witnessed in my eight years in dentistry: first with the Academy of General Dentistry, then as Editorial Director of Dental Products Report, Dental Practice Report and Modern Hygienist, and now as Editorial Director of Dentalcompare.com. It's a trend away from big, organized dentistry, where dentists feel they should belong, and towards smaller groups of like-minded professionals, where they want to belong.

In many ways, this trend has been sparked by the Internet, a tool whose greatest strength lay in its facility to connect people who share the same interests. The Townie Meeting is the outgrowth of people who for the most part met online and got to know each other by sharing ideas. Today, Dental Town is a thriving online community and a thriving real community. And that's very good for dentistry, where traditionally dentists have viewed each other more as competitors than colleagues.

Discussions throughout the three-day event focused on improving dentistry for the betterment of patients, dentists and their staff. And it wasn't just between dentists. Many of the top dental manufacturing companies were in attendance to support the group. In a profession where manufacturer research and development drives the major advances in treatment, it is refreshing to see dentists and manufacturers sharing ideas.

Community is a wonderful and necessary thing. To see it bloom in the desert was awesome. My wish is that everyone in attendance carries it back home. This is one thing that shouldn't stay in Vegas.