Tackling teeth

Budget-brushers rejoice.

Dental hygiene students at the University need clinical practice and dirty mouths - reliable ones.

Novitski Hall is filled with eager, latex-clad hands and shiny tools to tackle tartar.

"It's the best cleaning people will get," said Michelle Reitz, a junior in the program.

"And we've had people say that," said Carolyn Ferguson, who also is a junior in the program.

Ferguson and Reitz said an instructor checks the student's work midway through each cleaning and again at the end.

"People can be assured that we are monitored" Ferguson said. "And on top of it, students get an additional five dollars off the total cost."

The discount is only for students. The average cleaning costs $30 to $40, which is less than half the cost of an outside clinic, Reitz said. The cost covers only the cleaning.

Ferguson said that she realizes that even cleanings at half off can be too expensive for some, but added that it's an important preventative procedure.

"We don't think about our mouth until it hurts," she said. "And by then it's bad - and expensive."

Ferguson said that most patients she sees haven't been to the dentist in years, which adds to the cost of the cleaning. The longer it takes, the more it costs.

"It is a win-win situation, though," she said. "We get clinical practice and patients get clean teeth at a discount.

"Each time we don't have a patient in our chair we're docked points."

Ferguson said the biggest cause of point loss is students who don't show up for their appointments. The first two empty chairs are half a percentage point, and any others are a full percentage point off the final grade.

"That's pretty hard core," Reitz said. "More people are being affected by the point loss this semester. The expectations are higher as you proceed in the program."

But even so, the desire to see more students is high.

"We don't see many students, but we'd like to," Ferguson said. "We see mostly people from the community."

A typical appointment lasts about three hours, Ferguson said, admitting the visit is a lengthy stretch for the average college student. She added that she would be willing to break up appointments for students who don't have three hours to spend at one time.

"And I'm sure other students would be willing too," Ferguson said.

She and Reitz both said that interaction with different patients is the best thing about their work.

"I love working with people," Reitz said. "It's rewarding - you're really helping people."

Ferguson agreed, adding that the educational aspect is important.

"People don't understand just how much the health of their mouth can affect overall wellness," she said.

Reitz also said the pay is very good for dental hygienists and that the hours can't be beat.

"There's no graveyard shifts, you have weekends off, a full week is only 35 hours and you're out of work by 4 or 5," she said.

Ferguson said she didn't have anything negative to say about the program.

"Except that you work your butt off," Reitz added.

Students can usually be seen within a week of making an appointment. For scheduling or questions, call 272-4106.