Frances and the Dominican Republic

Four years ago, we launched through the Crown Council and Smiles for Life Foundation an ambitious dental humanitarian project in the Dominican Republic with the goal of changing a culture. Each year we take four expeditions of Crown Council teams to the D.R. to work side-by-side with Dominican dentists and dental students to serve those in the country who have little or no access to dental care. For an up-close look you can visit www.CrownCouncil.Blogspot.com

The organizer and inspiration behind this ambitious project is Dr. Roy Hammond and his late wife Frances. Roy and Frances took me on my first dental humanitarian expedition in 2003 and I will never forget it and the lessons learned.

Toward the end of that trip, I remember many of us dragging. The days had been long, the weather was warm, and our energy levels were low. On that day, Frances Hammond came up to me and said, “I know we’ve worked on a lot of teeth during this week, but we didn’t come here to work on teeth, we came to work with people.”

We were scheduled that day to work at an orphanage for blind children many of whom had been abandoned by their parents. Our patients that day would never see us, they would never see the faces of the people helping them or working on their teeth. These children would only remember how we made them feel.

Frances gathered the dental team together for a “Morning Meeting” and reminded every one that dentistry isn’t about how many patients or procedures, the greatness of your technical expertise, or even teeth. That’s right. It’s not about teeth. It’s about the people and how they feel because we have been permitted to come into their lives.

That day, I watched in amazement as our exhausted team rallied around the true purpose of the mission, to serve people. I watched blind children feel the true care and concern from people they would never see with their eyes. It was a transforming experience that grounded me in the real purpose of service.

I have always been grateful for that lesson Frances taught all of us. She left a legacy behind when she passed away in 2009 that lives on in the work that continues in the Dominican Republic and the work that goes on every day in the practices that take the opportunity to serve there. They bring something back that positively influences the way they practice dentistry every day at home and the way they live their lives

So remember, it is not about the teeth. That’s a lesson that can be learned and relearned every day in every practice.

For more information on how you and your team can participate in the Crown Council’s dental humanitarian efforts, call: 1-800-276-9658 or e-mail Success@CrownCouncil.com.

For Better or Worse

Every time I accompany one of our Crown Council humanitarian expeditions (www.CrownCouncil.BlogSpot.com) to the Dominican Republic, I take at least one of my daughters to work and learn from the experience. Last week’s expedition included my 12 year old daughter Abby who helped every day with set up, sterilization, assisting, handing out hygiene kits, clean up, and whatever needed to be done. Abby even spent some time entertaining the other children while they were waiting their turn to see the dentist. One of her most significant accomplishments was the 750 hygiene kits she assembled to take on the expedition so that each patient could leave with a tooth brush and other essential hygiene items along with written instructions for homecare.

On our last clinical day, Abby assisted Dr. Jonathan Nicolas of the Dominican Republic. Abby held the flashlight, instruments, and did whatever Dr. Nicolas needed as they treated patients together. When we broke for lunch, Abby and I debriefed the morning wherein she made the following observation: “Dentists make things worse before they make them better.” Having watched Dr. Nicholas treat several cavities, she saw how much tooth structure had to be removed to make sure the decay was gone before filling the tooth. She, like most people, was amazed at how much had to be taken away before the tooth could be “put back together again.”

After listening to Abby’s fresh perspective on dentistry, it made me think of how many other things there are in dentistry and in life that have to get worse before they get better. Because we know it will have to get worse first, we often avoid taking action. How many of the following “worse before better” issues have you ever found yourself avoiding:

• Taking disciplinary action with a team member for fear of his or her response.
• Telling a patient everything that is really going on in their mouth for fear of how they will react.
• Making a change in an office procedure because of the time and effort it will take even though you know it will make things better in the long-run.
• Scheduling a long over-due C.E. course that you know will make you a better clinician because of the time and investment it will take.
• Remodeling or updating the office because of the investment.
• Taking the needed time to really train the team.
• Working with a coach to improve the practice for fear of having to face the truth about what is really going on.

When you think about it, most things do have to get “worse” before they get better and that is what stands in our way of getting started or taking action. But that same inaction makes it even worse than it would be if you just jumped in, felt the pain, and did it anyway.

So what is the biggest “worse before better” action you are avoiding? Could I challenge you to step up and start “prepping?” You might as well be in charge of the “worse” part instead of letting it be worse on its own. The faster you get busy and work through the “worst,” the faster it will get “better.”

Miles for Life

We are just back after riding 1,000 miles over 4 days through Yellowstone National Park with over 20 Crown Council dentists who each made a generous donation that amounted to a $100,000 benefit to Smiles for Life (www.SmilesForLife.org). Officially named the “Miles for Life” ride, Dr. Roy and Frances Hammond four years ago offered to donate the proceeds from one of their Learning Curves (www.LearningCurves.net) dental adventure tours to the Smiles for Life Foundation. Four years later, this event has raised over $300,000.

Over four years ago when Dr. Roy invited me to join the Learning Curves faculty, I had never ridden a motorcycle. But his challenge to step out of my comfort zone resulted in an official motorcycle safety course and a new Harley-Davidson in the garage! Since then the “Miles for Life” ride has taken us through the Colorado Rockies, National Parks of Southern Utah, and Yellowstone National Park twice. (Above: as the sun rises over West Yellowstone, Dr. Ed White, Roy Hammond and myself prepare with over 20 other riders and partners to depart for the day.)

One of the fun aspects of this building tradition is the numbers of riders who have decided to get out of their comfort zone and prepare to ride for the first time as well. Our thanks goes out to Dr. Hammond and his family for making this a great experience for veteran and neophyte as well.

As mentioned in this blog several weeks ago, we recently lost Frances Hammond. This was the first Learning Curves ride in over 12 years that she was not present. Frances was missed, but we admire Dr. Roy’s commitment to carry on the good work that they started together.

My thanks also to the dentists and spouses who stepped up to the challenge, donated, and rode including:

• Allan Acton
• Joe Albert and Maurene Cronyn
• Dale and Lynn Behner
• Bill Dorfman
• Joes Gurevich and Ana Loynez
• Chris and Ali Hammond
• Eric Harris
• Fred Hecht
• Denise Markoff and Fran Landoff
• Michael Cooper
• Mario Lemay and Suzanne Harmony
• Ron and Cindy Massie
• Ken and Lori McAfee
• Lon and Holy M cRae
• Tim and Faith Modic
• Jim Moore and Tara Bauer
• Ralph Pamenter
• Howard and Alla Steinberg
• Jared Theurer
• Ed White
• Mark and Angel Webb
• Paula Swenson
• Tracy Beckstrom
• Amy Gerstner

It was four days o0r great scenery, education, and mentoring never to be forgotten.

So step up to the challenge. Join us next summer for “Miles for Life.” If you have never ridden, you have a year to learn and get ready. If you are a veteran rider, you’ll never go on a ride that is more fulfilling that will do more good than this.

Dates for next year’s ride will be announced shortly. To tentatively reserve your space, e-mail us at Answers@TotalPatientSerice.com today. The ride has been sold out for the last three years running. That’s a tradition that is bound to continue.