FreeDentalDays2017

 

Introduction/Definition/etc Body Triaged Researching the Office How Wide Is The Community? Links Conclusion Discussion License Page History Page Statistics Page Views:  since creating on 20170918

 

Introduction/Definition/etc

 

Saw a flyer for a free dental day,

cleaning, filling, extraction services,

after breaking a second tooth,

this one on Safeway Signature Select

Granola, from the warehouse, after 

holiday, and more about what the process

and experience was like, for me...

 

Body

 

 

A lot of anxiety about going to try another

dental thing, after MindingAndMiningYourTeeth2012

MobileMashDentistry2017  and some other

stuff, likely not in there, up here, whatever,

but went this last weekend to Vienna Smiles

a mom and pop type dental office, which

did a day, maybe smaller scale than

MobileMashDentistry2017

but some advantages and disadvantages

to keeping it small, and writing about it

may make other problems,

not the least of which is my privacy,

as if they do it four times a year,

more people stalking, attacking,

"trying to do their assignment",

etc...

 

About 25 people waiting there

when I got there, and I hadn't read

the flyer that well...

 

Blue shirted staff with forms and a clipboard,

I had a pen, somewhere, and filled it out,

at least one guy being faster than me,

in getting it back in, the number on the top

right not written, nor a receipt type thing,

we are doing triage, later heard 5 chairs,

some cleanings, some extraction, etc,

so parallel processing and queueing (sp?)

theory applies, maybe like some games

mentioned up here...

 

I had to keep my stuff outside,

scary given what all I normally carry,

and staff wasn't out there watching the

whole time, afaict, like the security the plans

for DentalDays from ADA (American

Dental Association) or similar suggest,

and issues as I was leaving may have

meant they needed some, someone 

upset, or drunk, or why did he get to

go before me, or standard people stalking

claiming to know me, supposed to protect

me, and basically the opposite, afaict...

 

I had brought the usual robots,

to fill the likely long wait times,

but with two broken 

teeth, and a short form and signature

page, by the time I figured out what

was going on, calmed down a bit

from getting there early, not much sleep

worried about it, and showed the robots,

briefly once, checking for free WiFi,

and was starting to get ready to enter

MungedMetaData2017

numbers, going thru my stuff,

in the early morning

haze and dew (someone say next to me,

then said it was wet, maybe from leaving

them out, and I think I mentioned dew point,

mountain dew, and other stuff like that,

probably just kept there for keeping cars

away from the entrance, they called me up,

I dropped the Coder MIP,

sometime along there,

and broke it's arm, but showed

what I had brought to the kids that arrived,

and again at the end, as leaving,

to questions which I may get to here,

maybe not...

 

Triaged

 

I did not get an extra copy of the form

for my records, nothing out of the ordinary,

at first blush (SSN?, do you have HIV/

Hep, heart x,y,z, etc, but most probably

don't know and answering ? to some

only red flags, so if no piece of paper

saying I do, and ICD? or similar medical

coding, which only people filing insurance

forms would really see, guess not...)

Family history of, and likely, not asked,

so keep with the known, somehow...

 

I could have asked for another copy,

but socially it seemed like I was asking

too much just by being there,

and may have to get a copy

of my records, and likely need

to pay for copying

and other standard stuff,

I noticed afterwards, they did not do

the checkout triplicate form,

like MobileMashDentistry2017

and some other stuff, to get to it when I can...

 

Questions about allergies were difficult

to answer, I generally don't know what all

I've been given, so asking if I'm allergic

to sulfa drugs, and giving me something,

with no record of what I've been given,

even there,  and how would I know?

They say you would know, allergic

reactions can be fairly severe,

I recall some cleaning type of adhesive

stuff, they used threw me for a loop,

and in my life I've probably reacted to

to something, part of being fair skinned

is likely more allergies, seasonal with

ragweed, dust mites, etc, and those

have probably been scratch tested,

on your back, or similar,

or TB bubbling for volunteering some places,

but what all medicines I've had,

how would I know, maybe ask family,

they may remember, as inoculations

and shots as a kid, probably learn

quickly, all another reason to be like

Patrick Swayze (sp?) in Road House

and keep a copy of your own

medical records, he playing a bar bouncer,

and in and out of ER's, me a "poor

historian" or whatever that is called

 recently...  

 

Military and others probably

give you your own record to take

to the next station/assignment,

electronic medical records,

may make that easier,

or maybe not, google online

health records seemed to have failed,

some places aren't well connected

and automated, so who, besides ADA,

and the state, would warehouse such stuff?

Besides the patient/ client?

Photocopying most places is at

$0.10-$1/ page,

and how to do digital x-rays,

DCIM (?) or similar medical x-ray

file format, MRI and others,

burn to a CDR/DVD similar to ER

records, and what to do with all that,

where to safely store them,

how to read and interpret, and

comment on them, like HIPPA

most places only think you want

them for legal action against them

and more jargon the better, afaict,

in writing them, keep thepatient out

of the loop, not Stories Twice Told

by Irvin Yalom, MD of group therapy 

and existential and other

Love's Executioner

clinical stories and text books fame,

but third party payers and others

probably get stuff easier...

 

In non pay situations and see

what overhead they set up...

 

Researching the Office

 

A very quick online read of their website,

and looks like they are capable of same

day partial crowns, use the latest technology,

and have various board and professional

society accreditations, all good, and likely

busy, a Google review check, and so many

5 stars, I begin to wonder if they were bought,

free care, to get good reviews, and

extensive pressure and demeaning questions

 (do you have sores?) after the procedure

to write about them, and give back

(this after 10 years, and other volunteering,

certainly is, but risks abound, doing even this...),

makes it not so free, but free as in journalistic,

really citizen journalism integrity,

and free as in beer, some technical

communities say, can be two different things,

see Richard Stallman, and Free Software

Foundation (and GPL v2->3) for more

minutia on that stuff...

 

 

How Wide Is The Community?

 

So in Vienna, or at least Fairfax County,

by address (Maple turns into Chain Bridge

past the line? but like Alexandria, is postal

address down towards Mount Vernon,

but county/ city line differs?)

and name and I live in Arlington,

so wondered if I would be excluded,

only difference on that I could tell is

the free dental supplies on my exit

out the back (someone thought like being

flushed, bum's srush, but busy stepping up

the pace, only go to 10 patients by the time

I got in, and talk of standing up during the

procedures to speed them up, really

likely tire them out quicker?),

"those are for others, and grant funded"

or similar comments as I looked at all

the doggie bag type take aways...

 

 

Links

 

MindingAndMiningYourTeeth2012  

 

MobileMashDentistry2017

 

and likely more, after trying three

dental schools I had thought I would

do a chart, but not remembering,

out of hundreds of pages, some I might

remember, some not so much,

and the clever naming may not help that...

Catchy title, but cleverness is only ego

in writing and a lot of other things...

 

http://ViennaSmilesVA.com

 

 

 

 

Conclusion

 

Summary of experience or similar

 

Fixed one tooth, the most recently broken one,

and what had more pain, and called it a filling,

so will see, how it holds up, busy right now,

off to other things...

 

 

Issues brought up don't really reflect the

service, just how the service was experienced,

if they do this often, maybe take that into account,

maybe other offices, will try it and do some online

searching, maybe I really am a famous case,

someone presented me at dental school,

or similar grand rounds type stuff,

so learn from this experience and 

as they say, give back...

 

This writing, not matter how bad/ good

is a form of giving back...

 

Some things possibly learned/ experienced

by others might be sugar sensitivity of teeth,

blowing air on them, vs, hot and cold,

or tapping on them with a hammer to see

if the ones nearby make me flinch,

or pain (1-10)? : 2 and think I was kidding?

 

 

Is triage a fair allocation of waiting time for

patients? 

 

 

Discussion

 

A place for feedback on the page presented

 

What risks do professionals take in giving free

services?

Is it different in Virginia, DC, Maryland, Florida,

Houston, state of emergency, Good Samaritan

laws, etc?

 

Does their insurance require so much background/

credit check, etc on the potential helpees?

Is that was SSN is for?  Or just record keeping,

like the 1980's, driver's licenses and college?

 

What staff work is required, extra, or less

to give?

 

Would keeping records be an assignment,

or legal requirement for doing a Dental Day,

free for otherwise?

Who would oversee that?

State professional board?

Secret patients?

Professional Association?

Volunteer dentists?

 

Like one practice sees and another

checks on the way in/out?

Dentists, lawyers, etc against patients?

What checks and balances are there

against abuse and neglect, much less

discrimination?

 

Would people be required to treat

whomever shows up?

What problems exist in turning people away?

Early in the scheduled time?

Later in the day/night?

 

 

Would the society, and community weed

out the bad ones, one way or another,

or would it be typical rich neighborhoods

look down on poor people, and not want

them around, ala Hate Fairs?

(see / read Hate2017 ,

Eclipsed2017

and/or Pestilence2016

and see if your answer(s)

are different...)

 

What extra insurance  risks are taken?

 

Does doing this quarterly, mean a good

financial policy of tything (sp?)

or just with quarterly tax payments,

donated services, and what can reasonably

be done professionally, to work more,

to pay Uncle Sam, the State, and locally?

 

What difference is there in the recent

weather in Houston, Florida and potentially

up here, with Jose, or similar, headed for

NYC, that makes having no/ few

holes in your teeth/ mouth safer?

Say for eating questionable food(s)?

 

What prison and gang type threats are their

to infecting people, with health problems,

and forced exposure to contagions?

 

How to give back, in kind, or other ways,

while there is still the divide between 

rich and poor, and maybe culturally

and/or religiously, to be more like

Mother Teresa (sp?), or any other

faith based giving, without being preachy,

condescending, snobbish, holier than thou,

and other moralistic judgmentalism?

Does classism have class?

 

Or does all that go out the window

with a caseload of 100+ people, 

5 dental chairs and all hands on deck,

plus relatives to build a practice,

get some publicity and hopefully

not loose your shirt, in a risk

management sense, in the process?

 

How does this differ with charity bike

rides, and other seemingly risky endeavors?

 

Was showing robots giving back or just weird,

as some seemed to think?

 

Was I supposed to give away robots,

and then have nothing to show other

people when waiting for potentially hours,

well past my bedtime, before even getting

there?

 

What subsidized/ receiving benefits/ assistance

rules are broken and probably unknown by children

and others that giving things away ("less than fair

market value") is vorboden?

 

Would a business partner, attacking and/or

harassing someone, likely be bought

out of the mostly family business,

for conduct unbecoming?

 

What discrimination still exists towards

people, just based on their names,

in opening and running a practice,

even in the Washington DC area?

 

Would doing more free days as a person

starting out in a practice be safer than

later when you have a nest egg, etc,

stashed away, like dentists or others

in New Orleans, New Jersey,

Houston & Florida, tornado alley, etc

knowing some problems might happen,

besides even weather like hurricanes?

 

Would you not visit a free service, if given

by a Muslim mosque, Catholic Charities,

or say L. Ron Hubbard / Scientology?

 

Does government play a role in regulating,

and/or not regulating free type services,

or just try to take over when failing to

provide comprehensive care,

like ObamaCare,

TrumpDoesn'tCare,

RepealCareAndFamilyValues,

etc?

 

Would MediCare be a likely place to fill

health needs, after Mary Otto, and WaPo

reporting on a kid dying (sp?)

from an infection related

to dental conditions?

How about after the full book on it?

 

Points of Light, are they/were they ever

the answer?

 

Would you be able to go back to a practitioner

where you paid full price, and now down on your

luck, disabled, retired, or whatever, and get free

services instead, where your medical records

would give better data on what has been

going on with your health, instead of just

catch as catch can, and next to no history,

available, as far as catching systemic/

longitudinal, and perhaps more serious

causes of problems/illnesses/diseases?

 

Or spend a few bucks and get records,

and try to be your own best advocate

towards your own care, mental health,

medical and dental?

 

License

 

Creative Commons Share and Share Alike,

Non Commercial, Non Derivative,

for the whole site's contents

unless otherwise explicitly stated

 

Page History

 

20170918 Jerry

• Jerry created this page to log an experience,
• maybe good, maybe bad, interpretation and
• long term, will tell...

 

Page Statistics

Page Views:  since creating on 20170918