Dental Hygiene

For my second week in my Hawken Project, I started working with the dental hygienists but mostly Mrs. Loveland. The entire process was something new to me and I was very eager to learn. I started my time the dental hygiene by getting my own teeth cleaned. The process was shorter and easier than I remember it being. I learned a lot about my own teeth and it was nice to learn that there was nothing seriously wrong with my teeth. Throughout the cleaning process, she was telling me what she was doing to clean them, But also what I should be doing to prevent tartar and cavities from forming. Such as flossing more and eating less sugary foods. The entire process was simple and efficient. In the end, my teeth felt clean and I wanted to know more about the process.

The first few dental cleanings I observed I was interested. The result from before and after was a huge difference and I was impressed. Each person had different teeth and their own problems with them. A difficult part of this was getting photos. Everyone I asked said no because they didn't want photos of their dirty teeth on the internet. Besides this everything went smoothly. Mrs. Loveland told me the process is the same for each patient. It is to assess by collecting data from their teeth and their file. Then, diagnose by finding the problems. Afterward, you plan what is the course of action to fix the problem. The next step is to implement by activating the plan of action. Finally, you are supposed to evaluate the job to review its effectiveness. After watching this process over and over again, it felt very repetitive. I observed different dental hygienists in the office but it still felt the same. After my observations, dental hygiene is not something I still have an interest in but I am still happy for the opportunity to observe.