Sept. 11, 2012 Mock Board Patient? Maybe?

This afternoon I had an interesting experience with my patient. I saw another Spanish-speaking patient, and that language-barrier was definitely evident. My patient was a new patient at WSU who had never been to the dentist before. I took 4 BWX and a pano and scaled 1 quad. When my patient went to check-out, I discovered she had only brought $20 dollars for her $41 dollar treatment...somewhat of a problem. I had to pay for the remaining balance of my patients treatment which was not the funnest thing in the world. No, it didn't break my bank - but, any financial surprises for a college student are always somewhat of a heartbreak! I had mixed feelings about paying for my patient today. Part of me felt good for this good deed I had done as it was evident she did not have the means for much of the services she needed. However, Mr. Salomon made a very substantial point as he saw me dealing with this dilemma. He said, "your patient's treatment cannot be more important to you than it is to them". This comment put things into a better perspective for me. Not only was this good advice in this context, but it can be applied to all situations when dealing with patients and the services/education provided to them. Aside from the "incidence", the appointment went very smooth. My patient might possibly qualify as my Mock Board patient and will be returning next Tues. afternoon to determine her qualification status. So, cross your fingers! Also, my patient had the coolest (for lack of a better term) calculus bridge on her mand. ant. linguals that I have ever seen clinically. I am excited to use the intra-oral camera at her next appointment for a REAL pt. education experience. I think, because of that language-barrier, the intra-oral camera will be a great resource to utilize.