4 Important Things That Your Dental School Won’t Teach

After slogging through dental school, new dentists want to feel like they have it all figured out. Unfortunately, the working world is often far less kind to us, and many new dentists find out about challenges they weren’t really expecting when they began. We’ll go over a few important things your dental school won’t teach you so that you can feel more prepared for your career going forward.

How To Reduce Patient Anxiety

Anxiety around dentists and dental offices is a very real affliction that many people deal with. Whether it’s a fear of pain, perceived embarrassment for the state of their oral health, or worries over money, dentists have a secondary job of assuaging patients’ fears and anxieties. The more effective you are at working with your patients and keeping them calm, the more people will come to rely on you and trust you.

The Importance of Efficient Speed

A crucial thing you won’t learn during dental school is how to work both effectively and efficiently. In a dental practice, you won’t have all the time in the world to complete a procedure. You’ll have other obligations, including other patients, who will be waiting on you to get through your work in a timely manner. Balancing both care and efficiency isn’t easy, and you’ll likely have a period where you feel behind often. With more practice, time management will become simpler, and you’ll get a better feel for how long certain procedures need to take.

How To Stay Calm Under Pressure

With less time to do any single task, the pressure of your work can start to get to you. No one performs their best when they feel overwhelmed by worry or stress. If you have a tooth extraction complication pop up, will you be able to calm yourself down quickly enough to handle it? Remaining calm, even in the face of adversity, is a key trait of any reliable dentist. The pressure will take time to adjust to, but you will improve with more experience.

Confidence in Your Skills

Even if you do very well in dental school, you might not feel as confident when you start working at a practice. The pace is faster, the patients aren’t as forgiving, and you have a lot more to do in a day. Developing confidence in the skills you have is all about repetition. Don’t let your slipups be your downfall—instead, use them as learning opportunities and improve on what went wrong. Through dedication, you’ll develop the self-confidence you need to tackle your work head-on without worrying.

Transitioning from school to work isn’t easy for anyone, but dentists and medical professionals often have it the worst. Don’t be afraid to lean on your peers and coworkers for assistance as you adjust to your career over time.