Printer Friendly Email Article

June 2009 | dentalproductsreport.com
web exclusive

Endorsements 101

How products get endorsed and whether it matters.

By Stan Goff, Executive Editor

Who should you listen to when it comes to dental products?

With some newer products, you may want to try them out yourself to determine if they’re right for your practice. But this doesn’t work when you’re talking about purchasing a major piece of equipment, and it may also be a bad idea if trying an unfamiliar material or hand instrument leads to poor results on a patient. But with all the products currently available and many more soon to be launched, dentists can surely use a helping hand in trying to determine which products are indeed good ones to consider purchasing.

Know the source
Dr. Lou Shuman, President of the Pride Institute, is well aware of the numerous information sources currently available. He suggests you make sure you’re dealing with a credible source when you’re talking about products. This also applies when listening to speakers talk about dental products. “It comes down to three words: credibility, integrity and process,” Dr. Shuman said. “The practitioner should be comfortable that the source of information is unbiased, honest, and not for profit, as provided by Gordon Christensen’s Clinician’s Report and the ADA’s Professional Product Review Program.”

The ADA Seal of Acceptance is a voluntary program in which companies that sell consumer dental products approach the ADA seeking the Seal.

The following links provide detailed information from the ADA program and its guidelines—ADA Seal overview and ADA Seal guidelines

The American Dental Association’s Seal of Acceptance has been recognized by dentists and consumers as an important symbol of a product’s safety and effectiveness, and according to the ADA Web site, “For more than 125 years, the ADA has sought to promote the safety and effectiveness of dental products. The first Seal of Acceptance was awarded in 1931. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan gave the Association a certificate of commendation for the outstanding self-regulatory efforts of its Seal program.”

But beginning in 2008, the ADA Seal of Acceptance stopped dealing with professional products. The popular Seal program now only involves consumer products.

“The ADA Seal of Acceptance program for professional products was phased out (at the end of 2007) and now only focuses on consumer products. Its purpose is to assist consumers to make informed decisions about effective dental products as part of the ADA’s ongoing mission to promote oral health,” Dr. Shuman said.

Dr. Shuman said there are plans in place for the Pride Institute to begin offering product information to help out dentists. “The Pride Institute will provide educational direction to its client base regarding evaluation of emerging and foundational technologies, as this is a personal interest of mine,” he said. “No two dentists ever have the exact same goals, vision, or for that matter clinical style. A product or technology that works great for one, may not work for the other. Credible evaluation should focus on educating and analyzing findings, not endorsements.”

Lecture advice
Even those who clearly disclose their interests can persuade dentists into purchasing the products covered in lectures. So you need to be aware of who’s pushing what and put the most stock in a trusted colleague.

“All lecturers should be very clear about their affiliations and financial ties to companies. However, it should not end there,” Dr. Shuman said. “Lecturers can be very persuasive. One of the reasons they are on a podium is their gift to educate, motivate and influence. There is a responsibility that is inherent to speaking and that is the trust provided the speaker by the audience as an advisor and educator. Here again a history of integrity and credibility will provide a participant a good guide.”

Maria Perno Goldie, RDH, MS, suggests lecturers shy away from product endorsements unless they are prepared to provide information on a variety of products in the category being discussed. “All speakers should have a disclosure slide, or make a statement regarding ties to or sponsorship by companies. Speakers must be very careful about endorsing products, unless they are prepared to discuss all or most products in a product category,” said Perno Goldie, President Elect of the International Federation of Dental Hygienists.

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

1 of 2