Student Article Contest 2016
Hygiene Edge, with Lilac Paper, presents the 2nd annual student article contest! This year's topic is: Study tips you've been using while in dental hygiene school. Submissions are due by August 1, 2016 to hygieneedge@gmail.com. Winner will have their article published on Hygiene Edge along with recieving a Lilac Paper Dental Student Planner, and $50 cash.
6 Steps To Getting A Raise
Updated 4-6-24
At any stage in your career you could be wanting to negotiate your pay with your employer. If you are just planning on walking into your employers office one morning and demanding a raise you are setting yourself up for failure. These things take time, research and patience. Below are 6 steps to getting that raise you deserve.
1. Decide What You Would Like to Get Paid
Do you want $1-2 more per hour? Do you want to get paid on production? What is it that YOU want? Decide, so that if asked in step 2 you can be prepared.
2. Request an Initial Performance Review
The purpose of this 10-15 minute meeting is to make goals that you can reach so that next time you meet you will have met those goals and be able to ask for a raise. This is not the time to ask for a raise but if they bring it up you will have already decided from step one what you would like to be getting paid. Here are some options of topics to review at that meeting.
What are some things that I do well?
What would you like to see me do better?
What are my goals and the office goals?
3. Increase The Hygiene Departments Production
You want to show that you add value to the office and therefore deserve a raise. Read up on our latest articles below on some ways to increase the hygiene department's production.
How to increase production with the medical history
How to increase production with your radiographs
4. Increase The Dentists Production
Read up on how to increase the dentists production. We are with the patients much longer than the dentist, giving us the opportunity to discuss findings to our patents and then bring up those findings to the dentist. If we can help increase the dentist production, as well as our own, it makes us invaluable.
5. Track Your Increases
If you don’t know how to do it yourself, ask the front desk personnel to teach you how to check your production. All practice managment software systems have a way that tracks the office's production, and breaks it down into providers. Then track it from the last 3 months to the next 3 months.
Also track how much treatment the dentist diagnoses in your chair. Look at what they have averaged daily in their production for the last 3 months and shoot for a goal to help increase that number. I usually have to track this by the patients printable treatment plan as I don't know of a dental program that does it for you unfortunately. If you know of one, let me know below!
An example of this is you have found out that the patient grinds and would benefit from an occlusal guard, you use the Diagnodent and find 3 high readings on the occlusal surfaces, you also notice 1 large filling that has a crack in it (potential crown) and then 2 teeth with suspicious areas of darkness on the radiographs. You discuss your findings with the patient and say, “Let's have the dentist decide what they want to do.” The dentist them comes in for the exam and you bring up your findings. Then at the end of the day, you track how much treatment was diagnosed in your operatory.
Since we are with the patient more than the dentist we have the opportunity to find treatment the dentist may not see.
6. 3-6 Months Later, Request a Second Performance Review
I would recommend creating a 1 page statistic sheet to show your performance for the last few months to present to the dentist (or whoever is in charge of giving you the raise.) After reviewing your past goals and maybe even setting new goals you can show them all of your hard work and ask them for the raise.
Have you ever asked for a raise? How did it go? What did you do to help present the importance of a raise to your employer?
How To Floss Braces With a Threader
A short review of how to floss braces with a floss threader.
Are You a Buffalo or Cow Hygienist?
Use your imagination and picture a heard of large, powerful buffalo happily grazing on green grass. Next to the buffalo is a heard of cows also happily grazing. Off in the distance storm clouds appear, rain begins beating down, thunder shakes the ground below and lightening lights up the sky. The storm begins to move closer and closer. The cows take off running away from the storm as fast as their short legs will take them. The Buffalos, on the other hand, charge towards storm-quickly passing through it. Meanwhile, the storm catches up with the slow running cows. The cows keep trying to run away but the storm just moves along with them.
Let's be honest, besides buffalo (and maybe therapist) no one runs towards discomfort. But the faster you go through it, the faster it's over.
I've had times in my career that I've been a cow. Something new and unfamiliar was introduced and I was afraid/didn't want to take the time to learn it. Initially implementing the technology would slow me down from what I was used to and so I didn't bother. I dragged my feet on something I new would be a blessing once I mastered it.
I watched other hygienists charge towards and through the awkwardness of learning the new system and they happily went on more efficient than ever.
Are you a cow or buffalo when...
A new system is introduced:
Do you happily look foolish for a few days while learning everything you can about it OR do you just learn enough to get by?
A conflict arises at work: Do you avoid the person and tell everyone else how bad the person treated you OR do you work it out with the person of concern?
Your body signals you that it is experiencing pain: Do you make the proper adjustments and get the proper help or do you "work through" the pain?
Hygiene Edge Challenge: Be a Buffalo.
You may enjoy this video on becoming the best hygienist:
Handscaling Ortho Demonstration
I am sure all of you seasoned hygienists out there know the ropes of cleaning ortho well! Here is a little review for those needing a refresher, or those just learning. Thanks for viewing.
My Ortho Experience
As we celebrate Ortho Month here on Hygiene Edge, I wanted to share my experience in hopes to make braces wearing a more enjoyable experience. I have had braces TWICE. Once as an awkward adolescent and once as an awkward adult in braces.
As we celebrate Ortho Month here on Hygiene Edge, I wanted to share my experience in hopes to make braces wearing a more enjoyable experience. I have had braces TWICE. Once as an awkward adolescent and once as an awkward adult in braces.
Thanks to inheriting my father’s large teeth (thank’s Dad) and my mother’s small mouth, I was an orthodontist’s dream. As an adolescent I was severely self conscious of my buck teeth and wanted this braces thing to be over as soon as possible. After consulting with my orthodontist, it was decided that I would have 4 premolars extracted in order to make room for my teeth and to hopefully correct my class II bite. I was in braces 3 years. I hadn’t learned the discipline of wearing my rubber bands consistently and would quadruple band with a side of Advil for a week before my appointments in order to show some progress. I was not consistent, my hygiene was floss-less and I tried to make my braces as inconspicuous as possible, always wearing grey bands. I had failed at this braces thing and didn’t really know it.
The sporadic rubber band wearing backfired over time. Years later when I was working in the dental field I noticed that my bite was still class II and I had a “black triangle” between #8 and #9 that I wanted corrected. I decided to go to multiple orthodontists for evaluation. It became clear that in order to correct my bite and close that black triangle I was sentenced to jaw surgery and 2 years of braces wearing at the age of 26. This was a new opportunity to do braces right!
When I was an adolescent, my braces were a boring, awful experience. I had done braces wrong. This time I was going to enjoy this braces thing. Gratefully I was in Dental Hygiene school at the time and was introduced to the Oral B Pro 1000 mechanical toothbrush. I used the Power Tip brush and Ortho brush attachment to clean around my braces. The Power Tip brush allowed me to clean where the wire attached to the bracket without hurting my papilla. The Ortho attachment helped me clean above and below my brackets without needing any ninja moves. My teeth had never been cleaner! I also was motivated to floss knowing my fellow students would be peering at my teeth. Flossing was not my favorite pastime as it took FOREVER (I hadn’t heard about GumChucks yet) so, I added my beloved WaterPik water flosser to my hygiene arsenal. I decided that my braces needed pizazz this time and took every opportunity to change my band color to anything outrageous. I decided to have fun with them!
Looking back at my braces experience, I am glad that I was given a second chance. As a Dental Hygienist, I feel I can empathize with and inspire those unmotivated adolescents and I can also encourage those hesitant adults in getting braces. Adults with braces rock and they are much better at wearing their rubber bands consistently! Well, at least I was. I have noted my favorite products that helped me have a better braces experience. I’d love to know what products have been game changers for you and your braces wearing loved ones.
Wasatch Dental Hygiene Study Club
Hey, Utah Friends!
We are so excited! This Thursday, May 19th, we will be speaking about Local Anesthesia at the Wasatch Dental Hygiene Study Club Dessert and Learn! If you're local, come say HI and hang out with us! The meeting is held at Henry Schein Headquarters (1220 South 630 East in American Fork) from 7:30-8:45. If you plan on coming, please RSVP to wasatchdhsc@gmail.com.
See you on Thursday!
OrthoGami Giveaway Winner!
Congratulations Janice on winning! Please email us your information and we will get send you your GumChuck and OrthoGami prize!