NMDA Journal Fall 2019

20 New Mexico Dental Journal, Fall 2019 No matter where you are at, what type of practice setting you are in, or how “good” of a dentist you are, there is absolutely no doubt that within your first 5–10 years as a dentist your life is a constant balancing act. Just in terms of patient and practice man- agement you will be neck deep in the ebbs and flows of our career. One minute things will be great, smooth, and steady just to have “it” all hit the fan at once. You will be over- stressed, over-tired, too busy to keep up, and then all of the sudden you will be stressed because you’re not busy enough. This is our profession. Now fit all of that into your per- sonal life and schedule and tie it tightly with all of your financial burdens for the cherry on top. And, at the end of the day, what you should realize is that these are all good prob- lems to have. We have an amazing amount of duty, responsibility, and opportunity to be able to manage all of this and at the end of the day put smiles on peoples’ faces because of the relationship we have with them and the service we can provide. To some, we are miracle workers because of the problem that we helped them fix. To others, we are role models for who they want to be some day. To the rest, we are leaders in the community, heads of our families, and sometimes, most importantly, we are friends. I remind all of you of this because we should all take a minute to appreciate the blessing it is to be in the position we are in and the career that we have. It is a powerful career and one that can be very rewarding in many regards. The biggest thing that dentistry of- fers is its flexibility and variety. In lieu of this, I would charge all of us to answer the call to help give back some of that blessing that we have received. Due to dentistry’s flexibility, we can all practice the way that we want. Similarly, we can also answer the call to “give back” in a variety of ways. These don’t have to be large, grandiose displays of generosity. We can make a huge difference in many in- dividual’s lives simply by answering one call at a time. Our community has many, many needs that seems almost too daunting a task to fix them all. So, if you have the heart for it, then you can dive in and contribute to the large programs. Mission of Mercy is a great example of this, and it always welcomes more help. New Dentists: AppreciateWhere You're At By Joe Gherardi, DDS If international relations intrigue you, get involved with local mission trips or Dentists and Smiles without Borders. You can donate your time, your skill, and/or financially to any of these projects. But many people may not think that they have the mind or the heart for charity; or, rightly so, they may be skeptical of improper utilization of their time and money. This is where the flexibility in our profession comes in. If you see people that you know need help and you want to know exactly how your time or money is getting used, then reach out to people on an individual basis. Start in your own patient pool. Find out what financial breaks you can give to some of our patients who really need treatment but are on hard times. You don’t have to work for free, but start with small adjustments on a patient-by-patient basis. Always keep in mind that if the patient has dental insurance or another benefit program that provides reimbursement then you must submit to the insurance what you really charged; you don’t want to be getting in trouble for fraud. Or you can find patients who need a dental home from your commu- nity, your church, or your kids’ schools. See