As promised, I'm finally posting again. I hope to post more regularly. This semester was a paradox for me. It was very stress-free. No boards, no real patient issues, no hard classes, nothing. Instead of freeing up my schedule, it actually just made me lazier, which seems strange. However, it was a huge blessing for a number of reasons. I actually got married in August (thank you) to a beautiful woman who works as a nurse in the NICU at a hospital here in OKC. She's absolutely wonderful and we're both excited to see where the Air Force journey takes us over the next few years!
Let me quickly do a sweeping recap my Fall 2012. As for dental school itself, our school went through some major changes. Not just new faculty or new equipment. Try, new clinic model, new patient processing system, new x-ray system, new digital charting, new patient schedulers, new (almost) everything. For Air Force, not much new, but I did speak with some upperclassmen and got some good advice! I'm sort of just waiting around at this point to apply for AEGD.
Our school got a major revamp, as we are now using axiUm, a digital patient management software system, for all our patient needs. It's been a learning process for sure, and mostly for the faculty at the school having to give up the paper they so dearly love (yes, that was a bit snarky). For the most part, things went very well! We also hired PSC (Patient Service Coordinators) to call and schedule our patients. This has been a lifesaver. We are still the main contact point for the patient, but gone are the days of coming home, or staying late at school, and calling patients trying to get them booked in open chairs before a classmate. Competitive scheduling has vanished in a big way, as each student is guaranteed an appointment in at least 1 discipline each clinic session. As a 4th year, students will do any procedure they wish in any clinic period. As a 3rd year, like me, we have certain times we can do certain things. It works well enough and certainly better than what we had. To cut to the chase, the technical changes at the school have all but occurred in full. We're probably 85% there. We will be doing physical renovations over the next 2 years and if the computer models are accurate at all, this place is going to look absolutely amazing! I'm really excited for the future of the OU College of Dentistry, something I honestly wouldn't have said last year before this all started rolling. This place is transforming into something amazing, really.
Like I said with the Air Force stuff, there's not much new. In fact, there hasn't been much "new" stuff for about a year and a half it seems like. Which, for those considering the scholarship, should come as a sigh of relief. I've had no problems, no hiccups, no roadblocks, no nothing. Last year, I got a sheet to give my preference for when my ADT was to take place. This year, instead of options, I was sent a sheet that basically asked me to give them a 45 day window that worked. So that was new I suppose. I choose to do March 1 - April 15 in case something funky happens with taxes I'll have some extra money. Last year I got a lot back from the state (OK) and I expect to this year as well.
P.S. I'm posting at the end of 2012, but let's pretend it's 2013 already. That means I graduate next year in 2014 (hence the title of the post). Yikes! This is flying by! I know it will be bittersweet, but for now I'm just happy that 1st and 2nd year are over and I'm actually doing dentistry. As always, email, tweet, or comment below if you have questions!
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Friday, July 27, 2012
It's summer break (again)!
My 2nd summer break is finally here! We have 3 weeks off after Spring Semester, and then 3 weeks off after our 8 week Summer Semester. Also, I'll be getting married on August 11 and I very excited to open that new chapter in my life as well. She'll be a nurse, the perfect occupation to come travel with me in the Air Force for a few years (at least) after I graduate.
Our school is going through some massive changes right now. I just got trained taking digital radiographs last week, as our dark room was completely removed to make room for a brand new computer lab to view digital x-rays. It looks amazing! We are also dumping our paper charts in favor of axiUm, a digital record keeping software that will be the new lifeblood of our school. The patient's x-rays, charting, treatment plan, financial information, etc. will all be in axiUm. Each operatory will be getting a computer (presumably by the time we come back in August) where we can input this information. This will dramatically change the look and feel of the way we deliver treatment. My biggest concern is the faculty members that are not too excited about the introduction of new technology. I think most of them see it as an obstacle rather than an opportunity. It's unfortunate, but I think most of the students are very excited about getting rid of these paper records and get more in tune with how dentistry is done in the real world. After all, most practices that my classmates will start or buy into will be using digital records of some kind so I think it's invaluable to learn dentistry using these kinds of technologies now.
On the Air Force front, not much is new. Just bought some health insurance again for the new year and will be submitting a reimbursement for that soon. Also, my LES (for my stipend) has been going to my old address and I've been trying to sort that out. They come every 2 weeks so here in a couple days I'll see if my latest address change efforts will get them going where they need to be, to my new house!
On a side note, school is slowing down a lot now. I'm excited because hopefully I can start getting back in the gym and get my body in shape for COT. I played sports in high school and recreationally in college, and I even play basketball quite a bit now, so it's not like I'm out of shape by any means. I can pull off about 9:40 on my 1.5 mile run which puts me near the high end of the Air Force PT scoring. Having said that, I want to prepare myself in the best way possible and I'm looking forward to trimming that time even more and getting stronger for COT in the summer of 2014.
I think that's all for now, lots of personal changes and changes at school. Things are getting easy which means I have more time to do the things I want to do. It feels like the big hurdles have been overcome and now I just need to buckle in and keep doing what needs to be done and in 2 short years, I'll be a dentist!
It's also that time of year again when people are starting school and I'm getting more and more emails. Don't hesitate to email me if you have any questions about the program and check out the tabs at the top for more information!
Our school is going through some massive changes right now. I just got trained taking digital radiographs last week, as our dark room was completely removed to make room for a brand new computer lab to view digital x-rays. It looks amazing! We are also dumping our paper charts in favor of axiUm, a digital record keeping software that will be the new lifeblood of our school. The patient's x-rays, charting, treatment plan, financial information, etc. will all be in axiUm. Each operatory will be getting a computer (presumably by the time we come back in August) where we can input this information. This will dramatically change the look and feel of the way we deliver treatment. My biggest concern is the faculty members that are not too excited about the introduction of new technology. I think most of them see it as an obstacle rather than an opportunity. It's unfortunate, but I think most of the students are very excited about getting rid of these paper records and get more in tune with how dentistry is done in the real world. After all, most practices that my classmates will start or buy into will be using digital records of some kind so I think it's invaluable to learn dentistry using these kinds of technologies now.
On the Air Force front, not much is new. Just bought some health insurance again for the new year and will be submitting a reimbursement for that soon. Also, my LES (for my stipend) has been going to my old address and I've been trying to sort that out. They come every 2 weeks so here in a couple days I'll see if my latest address change efforts will get them going where they need to be, to my new house!
On a side note, school is slowing down a lot now. I'm excited because hopefully I can start getting back in the gym and get my body in shape for COT. I played sports in high school and recreationally in college, and I even play basketball quite a bit now, so it's not like I'm out of shape by any means. I can pull off about 9:40 on my 1.5 mile run which puts me near the high end of the Air Force PT scoring. Having said that, I want to prepare myself in the best way possible and I'm looking forward to trimming that time even more and getting stronger for COT in the summer of 2014.
I think that's all for now, lots of personal changes and changes at school. Things are getting easy which means I have more time to do the things I want to do. It feels like the big hurdles have been overcome and now I just need to buckle in and keep doing what needs to be done and in 2 short years, I'll be a dentist!
It's also that time of year again when people are starting school and I'm getting more and more emails. Don't hesitate to email me if you have any questions about the program and check out the tabs at the top for more information!
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
And now for the "easy" part
Well, I did it! In 10 days I'll be done with finals and you know what that means. Dental school will officially be half way over! Wow. I can't believe I'm halfway done. Sometimes it feels like I've been here for an eternity while other times it seems like I started just yesterday. One thing is for certain though. My class load will be decreasing dramatically and I'm very excited about that. I find a lot of joy and excitement in scheduling and treating patients and I'm thrilled that I'll finally be making that transition. Having said that, our school is going through some major changes soon and I can't overstate major. Digital radiographs (finally), patient schedulers so we don't have to schedule our own patients, dedicated chairs... etc. Some of you are probably reading this and saying "my dental school has that already!". Well yeah, we're taking the slow road to innovation for sure but I'm glad it's actually going to happen. Clinics are being shut down for remodeling and monitors are going up. It's actually happening!
As for Air Force stuff, I've started working out every day to get myself back in the shape I was in a few years ago. It's not that I was in bad shape by any means, I've been between 170 and 180 since Junior year of high school but I'm not nearly as strong as I used to be and my endurance has taken a dip as well. I plated football in high school and worked out for practically 4 years in a row. I'm running 1.5 miles Monday - Friday except Wednesday where I go 4 miles. After I run Monday - Friday I also workout, except Wednesday when I just do arms after that long run. I take Sat and Sun off. So far I can already tell a difference! I'm trying to really get my endurance up, as well as pushups and sit-ups since that will be on the AF fitness test. If you've followed my blog you'll know that I won't even be going to COT for another 2 years but I figured I had better make a habit of working out again sooner than later. My goal is to get the maximum points in each section so we'll see! On a great day, I can get under 9:00 on the 1.5 mile run but I usually try to at least get under 11:00 and then push it for a record just 1 day a week.
For those that are considering the scholarship, it's that time of year to get in contact with a recruiter. Check the banner at the top for a link to find one by you and as always feel free to email me if you have any questions about the AFHPSP scholarship!
As for Air Force stuff, I've started working out every day to get myself back in the shape I was in a few years ago. It's not that I was in bad shape by any means, I've been between 170 and 180 since Junior year of high school but I'm not nearly as strong as I used to be and my endurance has taken a dip as well. I plated football in high school and worked out for practically 4 years in a row. I'm running 1.5 miles Monday - Friday except Wednesday where I go 4 miles. After I run Monday - Friday I also workout, except Wednesday when I just do arms after that long run. I take Sat and Sun off. So far I can already tell a difference! I'm trying to really get my endurance up, as well as pushups and sit-ups since that will be on the AF fitness test. If you've followed my blog you'll know that I won't even be going to COT for another 2 years but I figured I had better make a habit of working out again sooner than later. My goal is to get the maximum points in each section so we'll see! On a great day, I can get under 9:00 on the 1.5 mile run but I usually try to at least get under 11:00 and then push it for a record just 1 day a week.
For those that are considering the scholarship, it's that time of year to get in contact with a recruiter. Check the banner at the top for a link to find one by you and as always feel free to email me if you have any questions about the AFHPSP scholarship!
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Turning on the Motor Again
The title of this post is both literal and figurative, because as the new semester starts, it's time to get back into pre-clinic (the literal part) and it's time to get my brain back in school mode (the figurative part). Last semester was pretty crazy, but it's awesome to be done with NBDE part 1 and also have another hard semester under my belt. This semester is different than 2nd year spring semesters in the past because we have a redesigned pharmacology class that's being taught early (now instead of 3rd year fall or spring) and not much was taken away to make room for it! That basically translates into a harder than usual 2nd year spring semester, which in turn means that hopefully from here on out things will be smooth sailing. Implantology is our last pre-clinical class and we have that in the fall so that will be nice to be done and ready to treat patients full time until I graduate! I can't believe how far I've come because it seems like I started dental school (and this blog) just yesterday.
As for the Air Force, things are going great. I got my ADT orders, and I was actually emailed in advance asking what date range I wanted to do! That was very nice because it let me dictate when the best time for me was. The only stipulation is that I can't be out of the country during those 45 days, so I picked a time when I'm in school anyway so it won't be a factor. I finally bought some books that I'm actually going to be using, but I haven't found time to scan the receipt and send my reimbursement package into the Air Force yet. I'm still averaging about 2-3 weeks from the time I submit to the time I get the money in my account which I'm very pleased about. They're very efficient at that (and everything honestly). I have no plans to attend COT this summer, again, because we have 8 weeks of summer school and no time works for me to attend any of the 4 week COT sessions because I never have that much time off.
On another note, I got engaged last Saturday the 21st! We'll probably get married this summer so that will be a big fun life changer. She is graduating nursing school this year and it's crazy to think that one day I'll graduate dental school and never have to go to school ever again (unless I specialize, but we'll see about that)!
As always, feel free to tweet or email me with questions!
As for the Air Force, things are going great. I got my ADT orders, and I was actually emailed in advance asking what date range I wanted to do! That was very nice because it let me dictate when the best time for me was. The only stipulation is that I can't be out of the country during those 45 days, so I picked a time when I'm in school anyway so it won't be a factor. I finally bought some books that I'm actually going to be using, but I haven't found time to scan the receipt and send my reimbursement package into the Air Force yet. I'm still averaging about 2-3 weeks from the time I submit to the time I get the money in my account which I'm very pleased about. They're very efficient at that (and everything honestly). I have no plans to attend COT this summer, again, because we have 8 weeks of summer school and no time works for me to attend any of the 4 week COT sessions because I never have that much time off.
On another note, I got engaged last Saturday the 21st! We'll probably get married this summer so that will be a big fun life changer. She is graduating nursing school this year and it's crazy to think that one day I'll graduate dental school and never have to go to school ever again (unless I specialize, but we'll see about that)!
As always, feel free to tweet or email me with questions!
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