That's My Job!

Just in case you all missed it U S News and World report recently did their annual review of the best occupations in the United States this year, 2015, and the #1 job is dentistry.  Yes, that’s my job!  U.S. News and World report says dentistry offers “a comfortable salary, low unemployment rate and agreeable work/life balance.”  Dentists also topped the publication for this best healthcare occupations.  In fact Dr. Richard Balachovic, President Chief Executive Officer of the American Dental Education Association, is quoted as saying, “today’s students want it all and dentistry really does deliver that.  What other profession allows you to care for patients, make a good living and work as part of a team and have flexibility.”  Dr. Gerard Kugel, editor and chief of Inside Dentistry, says, “I agree that dentists do more than just treat teeth.  We diagnose dental and medical issues and if we do our jobs correctly we improve the quality of life for our patients.  It is a career that is rewarding both financially and personally.”   US News says that the flexible work schedule and low unemployment rate of dentistry also helps propel them to the top spot of the top 100 jobs in the U.S., which includes business, creative, construction, healthcare, social services and technology professions.  They listed the 4 following reasons for choosing dentists as #1: a low unemployment rate, a decent work/life balance, good salary and they predicted employment growth of nearly 16% between 2012 and 2022 with more than 23,000 new openings.  In short can there really be a better job than #1?  I don’t think so.  That is why I remain a dentist and am loving every minute of it for the last almost 40 years.  If you know anyone that is interested in getting into my profession, I would be more than happy to talk to them.  Just give me a call so I can help steer them in the right direction.      

  

The Reasoning Behind Staff Trips.

One of the discussions that our hygienist always seem to be having with our patients when I walk into to their treatment rooms for examination is about our last or next trip.  A frequently asked question from the patient is “how do I get a job here.”  Well first of all it is not that easy.  The hygienist who is cleaning their teeth would be one of our 5 hygienists that have been here for over 30 years, 25 years, 18 years, 15 years and 10 years.  That is relevant as the average career span of an auxiliary in a dental office in our area is 3 to 5 years.  And in fact, the average hygienist only works as a Registered Dental Hygienist for 5 to 7 years before changing careers.  So waiting for a turnover in our office is not a way to get a job.  That is the reason that I pay for the trips.  It is all about stability and camaraderie between our staff members.  It started in 1984 with our first trip to Hawaii for the Hawaii State Dental Society meeting in Honolulu Oahu.  I purchased the typical 5 day $399 per person package with hotel and air fare.  The 7 of us went and had a great time.  But the one thing that the staff asked is on the next trip could they bring spouses?  I thought about it for awhile and decided we would do what we could to make it happen.  In planning the future trips obviously we had to keep in mind that all of our staff have different financial constraints so I have always striven to make the trips either all inclusive vacations or condos in resort areas so there would not be any extra financial burden for the staff.  84 trips have come and gone over the last 31 years and all have been great successes.  This year our spring adventure was an all inclusive Great America trip and a day long private tour of Levi Stadium.  This was an alumni trip with four retired staff members and their families joining us which made for our largest group of 73 people.  The 4^th of July trip is to Heavenly Valley's The Ridge over Lake Tahoe and our winter retreat is a Princess cruise with balcony rooms for couples and inside cabins for families.  While some may say this is an extravagance, I cannot disagree more!  The trips allow the staff and their families to come together outside the office and form bonds that last for years and it makes for a much better working environment.  For proof, the next time you come here just look around at talk to our staff about how they feel about their work.  After all, don’t you want to have medical care providers happy with their jobs.  Doesn’t it work out better for you? Isn’t it worth it?  I think so!