My Hobby

In 1999, after I won the most prestigious clinical contest in dentistry, The American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry Smile Contest (there were 5 winners in the world) the Troy Record came to my office to interview me. I have the full story about me hanging on the wall in the waiting room of my Troy office. Every new patient that has come to my office since 1999 has read that article and the one thing that they all comment on was my statement that dentistry was my hobby.

When you think about that, what does the statement that, "Your work is your hobby," really mean? It means many things but I think that we can agree on some of the most important areas. When someone has a hobby they:
1. Want to lean and know as much as possible about the subject that interests them
2. Intuitively know that some people are average, good or great at this particular hobby and they want to seek out the best to teach them everything there is to know.
3. Devote more time to perfecting their skill in their hobby
4. Are willing to spend more money buying better tools or equipment to develop their skills.
5. Are not afraid to show their work to other hobbyists so that their work can be critiqued.
6. Tend to get better with practice as opposed to becoming bored by doing something over and over.
7. Are passionate about their work.

After almost 35 years as a dentist, dentistry is still my hobby and I am still perfecting my craft despite the fact that many of my colleagues don't believe that that is really necessary.

My work is my hobby and I hope to be a better dentist next year than I am this year. And in ten years, I hope to look back at the work that I am doing today and remark how much better I am than I used to be.

The American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry no longer holds a Smile Contest but even at age 62, I feel that I still could win...Why wouldn't I win...my work is my hobby.

Trust

Intelligent folks care about finding competent professionals to take care of them. When someone is honest, ethical and competent then and only then, can you place your confidence and trust in him or her.

Folks that want competent professionals to take care of them rarely ask, "And do you take my insurance (as full payment)?" Mediocre dentists have to 'compete' with a great number of other mediocre dentists who force each other to participate with insurance companies. Highly educated and competent dentists are a rare breed and therefore when a patient goes looking for competence, they are willing to pay for an exceptional level of care.

I have been treating a patient for the past 5 years and when we met, I transformed a dark and worn smile into something dazzling. So beautiful, in fact, that she continually commented on her worn, dark and uneven lower teeth. Last Friday was her appointment to finally make the changes on her lower teeth and during the appointment, she commented that she was having a difficult time finding doctors that she could trust. She immediately corrected herself and said, " I never have to worry about trusting you."

I will do everything possible to earn and keep your trust in me.

The Consumate Dentist

When the former Dean at SUNY/Buffalo School of Dental Medicine visited my office with his wife earlier this year, it was an effort to show his wife who is also a dentist that quality, ethical dental practices DO exist around the country. At one point when I told him that I had an article published in a peer reviewed dental journal, he turned to his wife and said, "The best dentists teach, publish, mentor and do excellent clinical dentistry."

I told you about my young dentist from Bangalore, India that I am mentoring and who spent a week in my office learning and studying how to do superb clinical dentistry. Today I received the following email which talks about a lot of technical stuff which you won't understand. But what you will easily see is the enthusiasm of a young dentist when he FINALLY conquers a clinical technique that he has been struggling with. He says:

Hi Dr.Benjamin, it took nearly 6 months for me to do a composite filling(class II ) without touching the bur on the carved surface!!!!! but this time i GOT IT.

I did this case today(upper molar with big class II including palatal cusps) with your filtek. Now i carve with the instrument which you had recommended, there was no highpoints at all, no polish, but it was looking so natural, amazing!!!, the photo is taken with the chair light so it has come bit yellowish. Criticize the case.(now while carving the composite restorations, your picture will be there in my mind till i finish the carving, probably i got this result because of that!!!!!!!). Take care, Ashok.

I am trying to be the consummate dentist: the teacher,the mentor, the writer and the excellent clinical dentist.

"That's Why You're the Best"

Many dentists hear this from their patients and it is wonderful for the profession that patients feel that way about their dentist.

My patient called at 6PM last night and told me that he broke off his front tooth at the gum line and needed an appointment. I told him to come in at 7AM and I would restore his front tooth....And the front tooth was indeed broken right off at the gum line.

We fixed Fred's tooth and no one would ever know that an hour before, he was toothless. Fred has been my patient for 20 years and after looking in the mirror this morning...He said to me, "That's why you are the best."

I take those words as my patient's ultimate compliment. In fact, I want every single one of my patients to feel the same way as Fred. Money is meaningless when you have done your very best for your patient and they are appreciative...Isn't this why we become physicians and dentists?

"And that's why you are the best!!!!!" Those are some pretty sweet words

I Am Proud to be a Patient of Yours

I can think of no better words that a doctor can receive from one of their patients.
The entire email from Bill was:

Dr Benjamin
Thank you so much for your terrific care and artistry! I am proud to be a patient of yours! I am delighted with today's outcome.
Best regards,
Bill

Bill is thanking me for my competence and my concern. Isn't this what you would expect from your doctor...that he or she knows what they are doing AND cares about you?

Thirty or forty years ago folks would do anything they could to have certain doctors agree to treat them. The patient was PRIVILEGED to be be treated by doctor so and so.
Today, there are so few highly competent and caring doctors that it ALMOST doesn't matter which one you decide to see...The only question folks want to know about their physician or dentist is, "Does he accept my insurance?"

"I am proud to be your patient" means that Bill and I have established a RELATIONSHIP in which I am ethically bound to pursue excellence in his care.

In some ways, I like the old days better.

The Disappointed Patient

Fortunately I am not talking about one of my patients. I consulted with a patient who was incredibly disappointed by the 'cosmetic dentistry' that she had received in another dental office. What most (younger) dentists have not learned is that the folks that are willing to have cosmetic dentistry will hold the dentist to VERY HIGH standards. These patients know exactly what they want to see in their smile and most younger dentists today feel that they can satisfy the esthetic requirements of these very demanding patients despite the fact that they do not have the knowledge or the experience to do so. My consult patient had every right to be dissapointed because the work she received did not rise to the level of excellence and the dentist that did the work has no clue as to why his patient is not happy. These dentists dismiss their patients as being 'unreasonable' or 'too demanding' rather than looking at their work objectively.

Do most cosmetic patients select the WRONG dentist to do their work? Absolutely!!! Most dentists lack the training, education, experience, judgement,passion or skill to satisfy the demanding cosmetic dentist.

Every patient demanding excellence in dental treatment MUST consult with several dentists before making the selection as to who will do their treatment. I tell all of my patients who are seeking comprehensive or cosmetic dentistry to visit many dental websites and dental offices to evaluate who is excellent and who is just trying to sell you treatment that they have no hope of delivering on.

Buyer beware has never been more important.
Remember...Ford is telling you that they do not make cars as well as Lexus by charging much less than Lexus.

Don't You Just Love It?

I visit almost every dental website in the Capital District. I want to see what other dentists are offering as well as look at examples of their dentistry. The vast majority of dental websites do NOT have examples of their cases while many dentists website contain photos of patients that they have NOT actually treated. In other words...they had to BUY the photos of beautiful smiles because they don't have anything to show you.

I just went to a website of a dentist in Saratoga Springs who placed more emphasis on the dental insurance that he accepts than he does on the treatment that he has provided for his patients.

Why do patients select dentists who do not emphasize excellence? Excellence is not subjective. Any dentist can place his or her work on their website for everyone to see and evaluate.

Please visit other dental websites and look at their work and their accomplishments and the choice for your family dentist should be obvious.

The Right Thing is ALWAYS the Right Thing

I will always provide the BEST advice to my patients even if it means that I will not be directly involved in their treatment and I will not earn any money from that patient.

I gave the patient the following advice in an email:

If you were my wife AND you were willing to have orthodontic treatment then that is what I would recommend. I sincerely appreciate the fact that you trust me sufficiently that you ask my opinion…I will ALWAYS look after YOUR best interest.

My patient responded in her email:

I can see that you are looking out for my best interests. I do intend to get the uppers done, but that still leaves me with crooked,unsightly,lowers, and the orthodontist won't do the bottoms without the tops. As it stands, when I look in the mirror, all I see are those awful bottom teeth. Like everything else in my life, I'm starting late. After reading your refreshingly honest letter, I have decided to go with the braces, and see you in about 20 months. Thank you again

What does this exchange of ideas demonstrate?
1. That I care deeply that my patient have the best treatment even though I earn no
money.
2. That my patient understands that HER best interest is my concern.
3. That we have established a relationship of trust and caring despite the fact that
I have only met this patient on two occassions.

Isn't this what a Doctor-Patient relationship is about? Or is this just the way it used to be? I was trained by the old doctors who understood the SACRED nature of the doctor-patient relationship and throughout my career I have made this sacred trust the basis of my practice. Insurance companies have tried to destroy our relationship but it my office, it has and will always be how we will do business. The right thing is always the right thing.

Our Journey Continues

On Friday, May 21, Root Canal Experts had their 6th course for our local dental community. The course lasted 8 hours and almost 25 dentists attended. Many more local dentists(Saratoga Springs) could have decided to attend this course about advanced implant restorations. Why would 25 dentists give up a full days income on a gorgeous Friday in the wonderful City of Saratoga? Golf or a glass of wine on one of the outdoor dining sections of a local restaurant would have been a more enjoyable option to sitting in a classroom.

The local dentists who were attending the course as well as the Course Directors, Francisco Banchs and Allyson Byrne, strongly believe that we can all take better care of YOU, our patients, if we learn as much as we can about the treatment that we provide for you. Why would any patient go to a dentist who WASN'T in the course? I most certainly wouldn't.

We thank Root Canal Experts for caring enough to make 25 dentists better.

The Mouth and Eyes

I have been taking care of one of my patients for more than 25 years and as much as I tried to convince him to become a dentist, he chose opthomology. He had an appointment yesterday for a checkup and he told me about one of his patients that recently became blind in one eye and may lose her eye. The cause of the infection that led to blindness was bacteria that came from the patient's own mouth.

I told you so...

The medical profession and the insurance industry treat teeth and the rest of the mouth as being completely separate from the rest of the body rather than being just part of our bodies. The list of medical problems that arise as a result of bacteria in our mouths is getting longer every day; low birth weight, premature babies, brain infections, heart problems and now eyes are among others have been reported in the scientific literature.

Isn't it time for physicians and insurance companies to wake up and realize that problems in the mouth affect the rest of our body? And most importantly...DEMAND that their patients visit a dentist 2-4 times a year?

Or maybe I am becoming crotchety as I get older.

Passion To Be The Best

Zwilling J.A. Henckels is a manufacturer of fine kitchen knives and "Passion to be the best" is their slogan.

I can identify with Henckels Corporation because that is my philosophy as well. Let's be clear, the State of New York FORBIDS any professional from making the claim that they are 'THE BEST' and for very good reason: EVERYBODY would make the claim that they were 'the best.' And, with very few exceptions, there is no single best dentist in their area of expertise but rather a very small group of dentists who are 'the best.'

With the above disclaimer stated, it remains my goal to try to be among the very best in the area of restoring teeth. Passion, skill, talent, education, hard work, motivation, and the refusal to accept failure are among the components involved in getting to be 'the best.'

I owe it to my patients to do the very best work that I can for them. Not 'the best' that I can do so that I can make it to the golf course on time. Or not the best that I can do in the 10 minutes that I have alloted for the procedure. But rather the best that I can do for any reason and without excuses.

What we see on a daily basis is the art of compromises and as such, we are becoming more accepting of mediocrity. My goal is to become the best ...just like J.A. Henckels.

"You Are The Best"

That is the hand written message on the inside of a "Thank You" card I received this week. My patient had suffered more terrible things in her life than any of us want to imagine...Some of the bad things that happened in her life were directly related to her bad choices. Humans are not perfect and we all know that. I did a favor for this person with little or no expectation of earning any money or if I did, it would only cover my office overhead.
My point in telling you this is that even when people are down and out and cannot fall to any greater depths, some of these folks take the time to say 'Thank You.'
I did the favor for this patient because no one else would help her in any way.
To this human being, I say, "You are most welcome."

I Want to Watch You Work

Many dentists have visited my office to watch me treat my patients.Most of the dentists are young with less than 10 years of experience and want to see how others go about performing a particular technique..This happens all the time and I have paid other dentists in the Northwest to visit their office and watch them work so that I can pick their brains and learn their secrets.
Yesterday, one of the most successful dentists in the country from McKinney,Texas surprised me when he posted the following message on the ACE internet dental forum:
"On my dental "Bucket List" is to go watch Gerald do a composite restoration."
One of the MOST SUCCESSFUL dentists has set one of his professional goals to come to Saratoga Springs, NY and watch me do a most ordinary (for me) restoration: The direct posterior bonded restoration. This is something that I do many times a day and both you and I take getting a bonded white filling for granted.
But let me tell you a secret...my colleagues both near and far consider me one of the best dentists in the world at doing direct posterior bonded restorations (or to you and me...a white filling in a back tooth.)
The Mega successful dentist from Texas has a dream of visiting Upstate NY so that he can watch an old dentist do what he has been turned into an art form.
I am honored when other dentists admire my work.

Because We Care

I have consulted with a wonderful and attractive woman who is elderly but certainly not old. She wants some cosmetic dentistry and I have spent 4 hours speaking with her about what would be involved in her treatment and how many hours in the chair it would take. Trust me...I did not want to perform treatment unless my patient was ABSOLUTELY sure that this is what SHE wanted. This would be how I would treat MY Grandmother. My patient made her decision and she decided to go with less treatment than she originally wanted. We called our patient the day before her 2.5 hour appointment as a reminder and she asked what the appointment was for. I was in disbelief when Donna, my secretary, told me.

My patient arrived the next day for her appointment and I AGAIN reviewed the treatment that we were going to start. She then asked me why her upper lip no longer moved up to show her teeth when she tried to smile.

THE LIGHTBULB WENT ON!!!!!!!!!

I had taken photos of my patient on her first consultation appointment and when I reviewed the photos, I found that my patient was indeed correct and that her upper lip no longer moved when she smiled. I asked my patient if she was taking any new medicines to which she said 'no.' I then asked her if she had any medical treatment since February when the photos were taken. She told me that she had had her eyes treated. I then asked her what kind of anesthesia was used to which she responded, "The doctor put me to sleep."

Tentative Diagnosis: A mini stroke.

I called my patient's long time physician and informed him of my findings.

I made no money for my patients appointment since I could not in good conscience do any treatment...What I did do was extend this patient's life as she will probably be placed on blood thinners to prevent future debilitating strokes.

Why didn't I just do what was scheduled to be done and call the physician on another day? Because it was not the right thing to do.

Why did we do the right thing???? BECAUSE WE CARE...even when caring costs us money...It is not about the money nor will it ever be.

62

I turn 62 this week!

I have told you that a recent survey reported that the overwhelming majority of dentists practicing today want to be retired at my age...Of course.....They don't enjoy their profession and they haven't for many years.

If someone offered me 3 millon dollars to retire...I would have to turn it down...What would I do with my time??

I love fixing teeth and always have. I do it better today than at any time in my career. Why would I stop doing what I enjoy doing?

The MOST important quality for selecting a dentist is their level of passion for what they do.

A 62 year old passionate, highly educated, nationally recognized dentist rarely exists today...In fact, I can only think of one.

The Waiter

On short notice my wife went to Buffalo to see her Brother who travelled from Huntsville, Alabama to see his children. This meant that I was on my own for dinner. I went to the Health Food Store (Four Seasons) for some home cooked, healthy food and was walking around Saratoga and met a friend who flew in from Baltimore to be with his significant other. My friend convinced me to join them for a glass of wine which I did. The waiter soon discovered that we were dentists and he told us that he needed to have teeth pulled and how much did I charge. My friend whispered that I needed to give him my card since my office is 1/2 a block from the restaurant. But the more the waiter talked the more I realized that this person would hate being a patient in my office.

I have told you many..........many.......times that fixing teeth is NOT about the money but about providing excellence every single time I treat a patient. If a patient is only looking to find a dentist at the lowest possible price then that person has many options in Capital District...I am not one of them.

I am PASSIONATE about fixing teeth and the waiter said that he wishes that someone would just take out all of his teeth and that would be the end of his problems. (Aside: The end of some problems but the beginning of others.) Patients that sincerely want to keep their teeth as healthy, attractive and as long as they can have found a home at 18 Division Street, Saratoga Springs.

The waiter needs to find a dentist who cares as little about his teeth as he does. His search will be short.

This is NOT Manhattan

I saw my patient who is a model (her case is on my website) for a second time in two days and while we were chatting she told me that no one beleives that she has had cosmetic dentistry. They tell her that her teeth are just BEAUTIFUL and that they have to be natural...My job is to make teeth look like the very best that NATURE has to offer.

When other models from Manhattan tell my patient that they are planning to have cosmetic dentistry she tells them NOT to have veneers here (meaning Manhattan) but they need to take a trip to Saratoga to have Dr. Benjamin treat them.

Isn't that a change? Most of the time you hear folks say that they are going to New York City to buy something or buy some service.

Saratoga is not Manhattan but for some things....Saratoga rates right up there with Manhattan.

Something is Rotten in Dentistry

I friend of mine was in town to accompany his friend who was an exhibitor at a dental meeting in Saratoga. While he is a dentist, his primary career is making presentations for different companies that pay him to lecture.

What I have found is that many dentists will do ANYTHING not to have to do dentistry for their patients. They much rather talk to other dentists about doing dentistry for their patients.

There are so few talented dentists (aka craftsman) left to actually treat patients that I believe that general quality of dentists is NOT what it was 10-15 years ago AND IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH NATIONAL HEALTH CARE OR THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION.

It has to do with the middle class valuing other things than their health or their teeth. If folks don't value a very talented dentist, then fewer dentists will invest their time, money or efforts in becoming the best.

I have had many opportunities to lecture for money or represent companies for an honorarium but I would much rather FIX teeth than TALK about fixing teeth.

I want to be your dentist because I LOVE fixing teeth.

I Broke my Front Tooth and I have an Interview on Monday

Matthew has been my patient since he was a young teenager. He and the other men in his family used to play basketball and one by one, they all damaged their front teeth. Last evening his Mother called the office to state that his front tooth could not get out of the way of a fork and his tooth looked terrible and he has an interview on Monday morning.

I have told you again and again that it is my job to take care of you and if that means seeing a patient on a Saturday morning, I will be there for you.

You don't need me on Tuesday if your interview is on Monday...Think about this and ask yourself if your current dentist cares about you enough to take care of you when you need to be taken care of.