Transparency Emerges in Dentistry

Posted on July 7, 2012 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

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Cavities Blamed on Patients

[By D. Kellus Pruitt DDS]

If your car repeatedly requires costly repairs because you never change the oil, would you blame your mechanic?

PBS Frontline

Dentists are justifiably upset because the recent PBS Frontline documentary “Dollars and Dentists” blames them for our nation’s deteriorating oral health.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/dollars-and-dentists/

When in reality, good oral hygiene habits are the very basics of personal accountability – reinforced by painful and embarrassing lessons as needed.

Tradition Dentists Usually Silent

Traditionally, dentists seldom speak up. But at a time when they are finding it difficult to keep their chairs filled, even by discounting their fees, “Dollars and Dentists” struck an inflamed nerve – causing dentists to publicly react in defense of the profession like never before.

As an example, here is Dr. Alan Mead’s blunt response which he posted for his patients to read on his Mead Family Dental website:

“If you have dental problems, it’s mostly your fault. And if you want to have less dental problems, it’s your responsibility. It’s not the fault of the dental insurance company. It’s not the government’s responsibility. It’s on you.”

http://meadfamilydental.com/2012/07/preventable/

Responses

According to other responses, apparently far fewer blameless people are born with “soft teeth” than one might be led to believe by people with lots of cavities. Dentists have politely, but futilely reminded people for decades that it’s refined sugar, bacteria and poor brushing habits that rots teeth.

Assessment

I think the demand for truth in healthcare is going to continue. Over the next few months watch for one or more recognized leaders in the dental profession to actually mention the word “transparency” for the first time since 2008 when an ADA President-elect candidate from California used the word in his campaign platform. He lost. But now that dentists are finally becoming sufficiently annoyed by reporters’ broad accusations of greed and malfeasance, it could be interesting to watch the predictable emergence from obscurity of this perky little healthcare niche – one agitated dentist at a time.

Conclusion

If openness were popular, someone would have long ago told Grandpa his breath smells like death.

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