Wednesday, April 2, 2008

April fools...

Remind me never to go to the dentist on April 1st. What a nightmare. Let's set the tone with a little background information. In February, I signed up to be a dental board subject, I was motivated by the free x-rays, screening and of course the $75+. And to top it off, I would get a cavity removed and filled, (yes Novocaine was included), with a composite filling free of charge, Who wouldn't want all those perks just for sitting there looking pretty for 4 hours. I was almost excited when the screener told me I had a cavity and even better that I was eligible to be a board patient.
A few weeks pass and I received a phone call from the student a week before the boards and we met, she looked at my tooth and it was fine. Sunday rolled around and I went to the school as prearranged and waited for my turn. The student had already passed her other 2 tests and I was the finale. Yipp-ee. I was fitted up with a very attractive dark sea green dental dam. If you have never had the chance to wear one, might I recommend just trying one on and looking at the mirror. Oh dear, wasn't I a cutie. Heck no I wasn't! I looked like the world's biggest nerd, my only consolation was that the other boards patients looked just as ridiculous. My dental student took all 4 hours and still didn't finish, thus she failed. She had to put on a temporary filling and she was told by her advisor that she would foot the bill for my replacement filling. So I'm feeling like I like dirt because I have a $100 check in my hand just for showing up and she still didn't pass.
A couple of weeks pass and I go in for my permanent filling and she still took 3 hours, but I was sure it was in for the long hall.
Now it's April 1st and I went to the U of M dental school, hoping to get a long over due teeth cleaning and fix the bite of my new filling. The dental student, Mark Hawn, was fantastic, no complaints about anything he did or his assistant, Molly Henry. We had a great time with my teeth, if one can have a great time with teeth. While Mark was "exploring" my teeth with an "explorer," he called over the on call Dentist and they both noted that my new D4 composite filling was broken. Yea, the one that took 3 hours, that one. I stopped them and asked, "April fools right?" No. I was livid. To make it even more humorous, it was most likely going to cost ME, $129 to get it fixed. I'm sorry livid doesn't really describe how felt, it was more of a "Pissed off" feeling with the thoughts of "I bet I'm going to need a root canal next" & "I don't feel sorry for taking her $100 anymore because I'll need it to pay for her screw up!"
In the end I didn't have to pay for the filling replacement #2, it had a 1 year warranty. That was good because I'd already spent the $100 on something
frivolous anyway. So at 10 a.m. Mark and his lovely assistant Molly, fixed my tooth (D4) and cleaned my teeth by 12. (Sometimes my counting is off, but was that only 2 hours?) I just wanted to add that Mark was just starting on his 4th year and he still has another year or so before he can take the boards. (I digress.) The moral of the Story: Just because someone can pass a test, like oh I don't know, the DAT (Dental Admission Test), doesn't mean they have the dexterity or skill to be a dentist. Book smarts do not equal fine motor skills.

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