Are Dentists out of Touch?

Here is an article written by Joushua Bernstien and appeared in Dental Economics. At a recent dental meeting, a famous panel of dentists and consultants fielded questions about how to improve our practices. Leadership, teamwork, vision, communication, strategic planning, focus, and many other great buzz-word ideas were discussed. When the dust settled after the discussion, I realized that we are completely out of touch with our cosmetic dentistry patients. As we evolve and behave like business owners, we sometimes forget that the patients are still thinking the same old thing-they “hate the dentist!” While we are excited about various occlusion philosophies, new materials, and high technology, the patients are still “afraid of the shot!” While we are dinking around refining the perfect crown margin, the patients “hate the sound of the drill!” While we are concerned about diagnosis and treatment, … Read more

Visit To Michigan Head Pain and Neurological Institute

I just was in Ann Arbor at the Michigan Head Pain and Neurological Institute. I saw Dr. Todd Rozen. For anyone who is suffering from a headache that won’t go away or is really interferring with your life I strongly recommend you go to MHNI.  While I was there, I recieved extension testing ranging from bloodwork to EEG and EKG. Dr Rozen showed me a possible nasal contact that was occuring in my nose. No one thus far out of all the doctors I have seen and have reviewed my films suggestede this. He recommened I try a diagnostic liodacaine test with an ear nose and throat doctor. Dr. Rozen was also concerned by my consistently high blood pressure and tremor that occurs in my upper body. He was concerned that possibly I came in contact with a heavy metal … Read more

Doctor Showing Me the Door

So today I received a letter in the mail with a letter from the headache specialist I have been seeing in the area for over the past year. The letter explained how he no longer could continue to treat me after February. He listed many other doctors in the area as well a more known doctor, Todd Rozen, and Michigan Head and Neck Institute. I’m not quite sure why he decided to send the letter. Likely due to me not being as compliant as he would like and having negative side effects to nearly every  medication given. On another note, I recently received the book Acute and Chronic Headache : A Guide for the Primary Physician and the Headache Specialist written by James H. Francis, M.D. I just starting reading the book and it seems to have a lot of … Read more

A word of Caution for neuragia-inducing cavitational osteonecrosis (NICO)

I came across an interesting discussiong on a syndrome known as neuragia-inducing cavitational osteonecrosis (NICO). One such doctor who advocates the syndrome has recently lost his dental license. In 2007, Wesley R. Shankland, II, D.D.S., who operates the Central Ohio Center for Facial Pain in Columbus, Ohio, settled charges against him by entering into a consent under which (a) his dental license will be suspended for six months; (b) he must complete 300 hours of continuing dental education that includes at least 40 hours in ethics, (c) he must not utilize any “alternative” dental or medical treatment without informing the patient that the procedure is nonstandard, (d) his ability to prescribe narcotics and psychiatric drugs will be restricted during 2008, and (e) his records must be available for review and monitoring by a physician or dentist who is experienced in the … Read more

Stand Up for Your Rights

So I just came across a site called DoctorsAreIdiots. Excerpts from the site…. “My wife, Betty Nelson Schuld, died on May 8 at a Portland medical center. Her abdominal cramps started in November 2004. She went to the emergency room and was diagnosed with bowel obstruction and pneumonia. After many doctor’s appointments and visits to the emergency rooms, she went in for a three-hour bowel blockage surgery. Then we were told there was nothing that could be done and she would die in a few hours. We sat in intensive care for six hours and watched her die. “I didn’t find out that she died of intenstinal ischemia until the next day. In her last six months, she was seen by 12 different doctors. None of them came up with the correct diagnosis. She never received a correct diagnosis or … Read more