What is your greatest success as a dentist?
Q1: The greatest success as a dentist to me is when I see the patient’s joy after his life has changed, whether it is because we gave him/her a smile makeover or a new smile. In addition, if the patient had a problem for a while and has been to several dentists and could not solve it, and we were the reason to solve it, provide the proper treatment plan and treat him/her. The joy the patient has is considered the greatest achievement of my career. It makes me feel successful.
What would you do if a patient disagreed with your assessment of his or her dental health?
Q2: When a patient is not convinced with their treatment plan or when him/her have a certain point of view and they have been around and asked. Therefore, if they see that a certain treatment plan is right for them and I see otherwise and is not 100% right or right for his/her case, I explain to them all the options. In addition, I would also point out the pros and cons of the treatment. I also talk to them in depth about the treatment plan, even if it is going to take an hour in the first session. If they got convinced, then great, if they weren’t convinced I start showing them the result before I start working as a mock up, digitally or analog or even with pictures on the computer if they got convinced I proceed with my suggested treatment plan, if they weren’t convinced I have two options which are if the treatment is acceptable but I do not see it as the best option, the patient signs a consent sheet that they want to proceed with their chosen treatment plan even after every other option was thoroughly explained to them. The second option is if the treatment plan is not appropriate for the patient based on studies, then I tell him or her I will not proceed with the treatment at all.
As a dentist, you may have to treat patients who are deeply uncomfortable or even afraid of getting dental work done. How do you make patients feel comfortable, safe and relaxed while working with you?
Q3: First, of course, no one likes dentists, and a lot of people are usually frightened from the visit because of the pain, old experiences, and the procedure itself regarding the many devices used. Therefore, that is normal. The secret is in the diagnosis session with the specialized doctor and that is why we give the first session of the patient the most importance. Because we listen carefully to what the patient complains of, there is a possibility that the patient cannot accept the doctor, has a problem, has a bad experience from something specific, the anesthetic injection, and the pain that accompanies it, the syringe poke. In addition, there are also people that have a phobia of the chair in the clinic. Therefore, all that shows in the first session from the talk we have with the patient and how well we listen to them. Following that, we start to highlight the patient’s fears, what scares them the most from dentists; what he/she hates the most about the dentist’s clinic and makes him ignore going to the dentist. Therefore, we try to overcome that problem by showing him the opposite of what he thinks. As well as being keen about his specific fear until it is an experience that can be accepted by the patient. In addition, we also change his point of view on the dentist’s clinic or the dentist himself, and that is also one of our hardest moments.
How would you determine when dental X-rays are needed, and how would you conduct this procedure?
Q4: The dental examination or the diagnosis is not built around the doctor, there are several factors to reach the right diagnosis. Firstly, the patient’s complaint. Secondly, the dental examination itself, which requires me checking up the teeth with my eyes, loupes or with the microscope. Thirdly, the X-rays, the X-rays, are a crucial part of the tools responsible for an accurate diagnosis. I cannot say when I can use the X-ray and when can I not, it’s not an option. Therefore, there must be an X-ray. It differs if the X-ray is only a panorama and is enough, or a periapical X-ray or a cone beam X-ray. Therefore, it differs from one procedure to another, but it is impossible to build a complete diagnosis without seeing the X- ray, seeing the patient, hearing his complaint, and taking his pictures. In conclusion, the diagnosis must always include an X-ray.
Tell me more about yourself, why did you choose dentistry as a career?
Q6: When I talk about my specialty, which is make overs, beautifying or full-mouth rehab with implants or prosthesis. The patient comes to the clinic often with issues that include pain and just general problems with their teeth. In addition, the patient also complains about his/her self-esteem because of how their teeth look or the function of them not being able to eat etc. So, when I reach a successful outcome with the patient of them being able to eat and them regaining their confidence and being happy, as well as their teeth looking natural. That is what made me love the career more and hold on to it more, no matter how long the treatment process is or no matter how much it is tiring; that is the result that makes me happy and makes me want to continue in this career, and that is why I chose it.
What is your vision for the future of your clinic?
Q7: Regarding my vision for superb, I won’t be cliché and say that I want us to be the best clinic there is, but my vision is to change the thought of dentistry in Egypt. That is that at the end of the day we are doctors, and that is why it’s crucial that not everything we do is about selling. I do not sell a service; I am not a merchant, and I don’t have a commodity to sell. The most valuable thing I present is the dental health and the health of human beings, and that is the most valuable thing god gave us and ordered us to take care of. Therefore, that is my vision, which is to change the thought of dentistry. I do not sell a commodity. At the end of the day, I am a doctor and I need to treat patients the right way and change the thought of treatment here. At the same time, my vision is to also change the thought of being scared from the dentist and to change the thought of people thinking that they need to go to the dentist only when they are in pain or that they look at going to the dentist in a financial sense, meaning that they feel they are going to pay a lot of money or that they are being scammed. In conclusion, all of that is what I want to change according to my vision. Also, the reason for me naming the clinic superb is to be superb at everything we do as a team that presents all dental services in one place, as well as presenting interdisciplinary dentistry, meaning that not only one doctor checks up on you. but there’s also more than one specialist that will work with you to reach the best treatment plan and best outcome you can reach.
What have you done to prepare for a career in dentistry
Q9: I am a medical graduate and Oral and Dental Surgery from Al Qahera University; after that I became a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. I took more than 300 accredited hours from different academies like the American and European academy. In addition, I also went to the college of cosmetic dentistry. I also have more than 250 hours accredited from the American Academy of implant ologist or Implantology Association in teeth implants and full mouth rehab. I believe that knowledge is endless. Therefore, every day, especially in dentistry something new appears. Every day we discover that something we used to do from 2 or 3 years now evolved and that something (technique) is not right anymore. So being always updated and always learning and always seeing new things is the most important thing. So, I still have a lot to educate myself on and I still have a lot of more knowledge to gain.