With more than 20 years in the dental publishing industry, Kevin Henry has guided the leading publications in the industry, including serving as the former group editorial director for 

. He now works as the co-founder for IgniteDA, a community designed to empower, enlighten, and educate dental assistants, and as director of marketing for Fortune Management, a coaching community dedicated to help dentists and teams have extraordinary practices and lives. He can be reached at kevinhenry@fortunemgmt.com.

Kevin Henry

In many parts of the country, school is either back in session or nearing its return. After a school year unlike any we have ever seen last year, students are going back to class in a routine that has different degrees of normalcy depending on where you live.

While students are getting back into the routine of returning to classes, they’re also likely getting back into the routine of scheduling their dental appointments around school time as well.

Last year, both school and dental routines were altered by COVID-19, and many students found themselves at home with their parents more than ever before. The change in routines last year has, 

 elevated anxiety, depression, grief, loss, and other highly charged emotions in children.

These are emotions that dentists and dental teams need to be aware of as children (and their parents) make their way back into practices this school year.

So how can dental practices prepare for pediatric appointments where the parent might be wanting to exude more oversight than ever before? Hema Patel, DDS, an executive coach with Fortune Management in California, offers the following advice.

“The ground rules need to be clear if the parent insists on accompanying the child to the treatment room,” Dr Patel says. “The parents need to understand that they should trust the dentist and should stay calm and avoid talking to the child. Their child is in a safe space, and that needs to be emphasized to the parents. If the parents constantly talk to the child, even if they think they are helping the child cooperate, it can send confusing message to him or her.”

Dr Patel believes that, with the impact of COVID-19, dental teams need to understand the temperament of their pediatric patients and their parents more than ever before. She advises dentists and team members to be prepared with their messaging and ensure the treatment room is a place of calm rather than chaos.

“Fearful parents should stay out of the treatment room,” Dr Patel says. “The dentist needs to be able to focus and give his or her full attention to the child. The only person the child needs to be listening to is the dentist.”

As your business heads into the heart of the school year, here are a few thoughts to keep in mind that can help even before your pediatric patient walks into the practice.

First, how are you preparing the parent and child for the visit? Perhaps an automated email or text message with a link to a section on your website that would help the parent understand expectations of what the visit will entail and how he or she can prepare his or her child for communicating with the dentist and team.

“I usually tell parents to talk about all the rules (parents may not be in the room with them, listening to the dentist, etc.) to the child before coming to the dental appointment,” Dr Patel says. “This way, the child is prepared and not shocked when we say a parent can’t be in the back with him or her.”

Also, in that email or text, you may also prepare the parent and child for any new faces if you’ve had hygienist or assistant turnover. Link to the page on your website highlighting team members, including your new additions.

Second, for younger patients, depending on your practice’s comfort level with items being touched, prepare the patient that the toy chest experience may be different than in visits past. There may be a different way of rewarding the patient for a visit well done than digging through a mound of toys as has been the case previously.

Third, work with your team to envision what “the perfect pediatric appointment” looks like.

Some of the questions that can form the “perfect” appointment may include the following: Are parents allowed in the back? What communication will you give to parents who may not agree with your protocols for their child’s visit and their presence in the operatory? Are certain team members better at working with children than others? Do you have patient education tools and talking points to help younger patients understand, for example, cavities and how they will be fixed?

As with anything else, making preparations ahead of time can greatly increase the chance for success. In a time when emotions can be running high and routines are anything but routine, planning ahead is perhaps more important now than ever.

Articles

Dentists and dental teams need to be aware of a variety of emotions that children (and their parents) are experiencing after a pandemic as they make their way back into practices this school year.

What You Should Know as Kids Return to School and Your Dental Office

	Trust me, there are plenty of people who were happy about the Chicago Cubs winning their first World Series in 108 years this past October. We’re guessing this teenager wasn’t one of them.

	A video recently posted on ESPN.com showed what happened when a teenager made a bet with his friends on the Cubs not winning the World Series … and then had to pay the price. As you can see in the video, he did live up to the bet … but it wasn’t exactly the smartest bet he’s ever made.

	We’re sure his friend was more than willing to throw the football to pull out the tooth, and it reminded us of this classic article detailing the nine craziest ways that people have pulled out teeth. You won’t believe some of the “creative” ways people have done it.

The 9 craziest ways people have pulled teeth

	Obviously, we’re hoping that you’ll tell your patients not to make any bets that involve losing teeth. We’re also hoping that your patients are smart enough to not make that kind of bet.

	It was only a matter of time before the Cubs won the World Series. Unfortunately for this young man, it actually happened in his lifetime.

A teenager is willing to put his body on the line after a Cubs victory.

This may be the saddest Cubs fan in the world

	I recently had the chance to speak with Dr. Kevin Huff, a dentist in Dover, Ohio, about how he uses the Restful Jaw in his practice.

	The Restful Jaw is an external jaw support device worn by dental patients that supports the patient’s mandible while their mouth is open during dental procedures. According to the manufacturer, it’s clinically proven to significantly reduce jaw pain and fatigue during and after dental procedures.

	Dr. Huff says he was a little skeptical about the product at first but it quickly won him over.

	“I admit that I was a naysayer at first,” Dr. Huff says. “Many of us were taught to support the mandible during oral surgery by having an assistant hold her fist firmly under the chin, but how stable is that? Also, a lot depends on the amount of force you’re applying. How hard are you pushing and how hard do you need to push? I got the Restful Jaw because it made sense. I do a lot of my own oral surgery and periodontal surgery so it made sense to have this as a part of my practice.”

Related reading: I Use That: Komet USA's PathGlider and F360 NiTi endodontic file system 

	Dr. Huff says that getting the patient to be comfortable with the use of the Restful Jaw during a procedure was pretty easy.

	“We have it hanging on the wall where the assistant can see it and it’s ready to access,” Dr. Huff explains. “If we’re doing longer procedures, like doing more than one or two crowns, or if the patient is having discomfort with his or her jaw, we’ll use the Restful Jaw. When we think a patient might benefit from this, we always ask if they’d like to have a ‘couch for their jaw.’ No one ever turns that down. We’ve never had a patient say no. We explain to them how it works and they’re ready to start using it.

	“It also works very nicely for work on the upper arch with elderly patients. It’s passive support that provides stability.”

	It’s also a product that depends on the team buying in and helping explain its benefits to the patient.

	“My assistant helps me guide the conversation and the placement of the device,” Dr. Huff says. “We keep it behind the patient so they never see it until we’re ready to talk about it. Sometimes, she does all of the explaining about how it works because the patient really views her as the advocate.”

	Dr. Huff says the Restful Jaw has been a great benefit to his practice, especially when used with another product designed to keep the hands of his team members free.

Related reading: I Use That: Sesame Communications and Healthgrades

	“We always try to plan ahead when it comes to using the Restful Jaw. I’ve found if we put it on the patient once they’re in the chair, it’s quick and simple to use,” Dr. Huff says. “It takes about 30 seconds to put on them. We also use it a lot in conjunction with the Isolite and they work very well together. We always let the patient help us determine how tight it should be and it keeps things stable in occlusion.”

	Dr. Huff says that the Restful Jaw has become a key part of his practice, both in terms of productivity and image with patients.

	“We don’t charge additional money for using it. It’s a nice add-on that we offer in our practice. It’s another way for us to give Ritz-Carlton service to our patients,” he says.

One practitioner explains how the Restful Jaw allows him to offer more comfort and care to his patients.

I Use That: The Restful Jaw

	When the Academy of Dental Management Consultants (ADMC) gathers in Denver prior to the American Dental Association Annual Session this October, there will be a speaker ready to share his military knowledge and expertise with the crowd.

, a nationally known motivational speaker and best-selling author, will be part of the 

. He’ll be talking to the crowd of dental industry leaders on October 19 about the Wingman Principles he learned as a member of the United States Air Force.

	I was fortunate enough to spend some time interviewing Lt. Col. Waldman recently about what he’ll be speaking about in Denver. We chatted a lot about the upcoming programs as well as some of the things that have motivated him to become one of the nation’s most requested speakers.

	You can listen to our exclusive interview 

Lt. Col. Rob "Waldo" Waldman will be speaking to the Academy of Dental Management Consultants (ADMC) meeting in Denver in October.